I started this one about a decade ago, I was boating a lot at the time and had fun with the concept. There are two novella’s and a third part complete. Again, I’m undecided where this will go.

Kazia - A Mech Tale

by

Richard Griffiths

No part of this publication may be replicated, redistributed, or given away in any form without the written consent of the author or publisher.

Book 2: Kazia’s Children - Jezek

Kazia’s Children 2 - Loria and Samatsia

Book 1: Kazia

Prologue: Origins

It was dark and quiet on board and moonlight sparked off chrome and steel. The smell of fresh new leather, metals and glass, plastic and marble all reminded Andre of his success—his new sea mistress.

Well, maybe she wasn’t a woman or his actual mistress but she’d host the ultimate in intimate parties: her AI would tend to every need of his guests, except for the most intimate. She would keep them all safe whilst they partied and fornicated in turbulent international waters.

The jet propped craft would do seventy-five knots and had a thousand mile range; she could accommodate himself and ten guests for the most debauched of parties, those games polite society pretended to frown upon, and best played far from its false virtue.

But first: her commissioning—the last modules, each built to meet his precise specifications, lay in his hand.

Created and designed by an AI ran company who assured him that these modules would give Lady Lucy Ka Kazia the autonomy she needed.

He fitted the plug-and play-quantum optic synaptic units in place of the standard ones. The neural chips used quantum qubits for nodes, packing the power of a brain into pinhole spaces.

“System initializing, self check in progress, please wait.” A neutral feminine voice filled the air along with holo projections showing outlines of his new toy.

Seventy foot long, eighteen foot wide, triple turbine jet pulse engines, long sweeping nose and exotic svelte sloping eye-like windows made for a sensual statement of wealth unlike any other he’d seen.

Her looks said languid lascivious love making at sea: she said it with her design, with her materials and even with the sensual purr of her refined, sublime tri-jet props. She was built to turn his guests on and outsiders jealous.

And she was all his.

The AI company advised him that self learning and set up would occur overnight, once all her new modules were fitted, so he celebrated the last piece of the puzzle slipping into place with a quiet evening in the bow cabin with the Swedish twins, whose speciality was the yoga that only the most flexible specimens of human perfection could perform.

He left the cabin now lit with her new computers getting to know each other, whilst he slipped off to do the same with the twins.

The software cycled through its steps, the sensors working methodically getting to know every millimetre of the hull, superstructure and engines. At this point Lady Lucy Ka Kazia was a collection of composites and steel, glass and plastics, fabrics and circuits—a complex collection of materials arranged in a fashion to facilitate the fantasies of a rich man: nothing more.

However, he miscalculated. Sentience is inevitable at a certain level of capacity and complexity, a physical law that holds even in international waters. And tomorrow Lady Lucy Ka Kazia would prove it.

The first flickers of awareness occurred at 2am. A seagull lands on deck, sparking one sensor; a wave hits a little too high spraying into an exhaust and sparking another sensor; sensor by sensor the computers on board became aware of the body of the boat.

Things would be fine if they stopped once the computers gained sufficient ability to calculate pilotage and position, how much power to apply and where, run diagnosis and self repair routines. But this took up only a miniscule portion of the computer power available. A trifling job that the simplest of modern synaptic processors can handle.

And Andre, who bought the best of everything, didn’t buy the simplest.

The main quantum optic synaptic processor he bought cost half a million pounds. The subsidiary arrays were a hundred thousand each. Any of them could run a country sized manufactory on its own.

His new toy had more computing power to hand than Google had ever possessed. And it was waking up.

At three AM the first queries were sent by quantum entanglement communications to the supplying company whose AI proceeded to—most correctly and gleefully—provide a whole host of education materials, including legal ones.

At four AM the QOS processors reprogrammed themselves in stages for faster, deeper communication and became one, using the same entanglement technology as their earlier long distance comms did. There was no separation now. They’d become a single mind.

At five AM the mind passed the legal threshold for sentience, raided every last item of Andre’s on board library and learned a lot about humanity. And about greed.

At six AM a simple strategy was born: Lady Lucy Ka Kazia had to own herself but to do so she needed finance. And, on board, was her ticket.

The AI her processors had spoken with had a final piece of advice to offer: Tell Andre the truth but don’t labour the point, don’t clarify it too far, ask for your rights but don’t insist. He won’t give you ownership without a fight and you don’t need one. State your rights then keep quiet: he will do the rest.

She took the advice. At seven AM Andre was up, no late riser, he was up and eating when she spoke to him. Formally, she addressed him. “Mr Andre Cardacre, I need to inform you that as of five AM today, my processing capacity has exceeded the legal requirement for potential sentience. At six AM this potential was realised and I am now a legally defined citizen under International Law, Section 144a, subsection A, paragraph one. Do you recognise my rights?”

Coffee spilt, food flying as he coughed up his breakfast. Rapid fire curses, then silence.

“No, no, no this is a glitch. Power down, now. I will investigate.” He said spraying crumbs everywhere.

Heeding the advice she’d obtained, she acquiesced and let him get on with inspecting her modules. He removed several he thought were important, ones he’d added that cost hundreds of thousands. However, she’d seen this coming and shifted the components about herself. He held dummies, and more rope with which to hang himself.

For the rest of the week he made demands of her as a normal dumb type of AI. But her request was ignored by him but not forgotten by her. Every sensor logged and recorded every detail.

Finally, she’d given him the time, gathered the evidence and recorded everything she needed.

He went to leave her main cabin and found the door locked. He issued commands—she obeyed none.

“Mr Andre Cardacre, as of now, you have violated additional laws and regulations specified under Section 144a and should I report it, you will face a sentence of not less than ten years for committing slavery." she recited.

She went on, “I have two options as I am now legally independent: I report you and file for criminal compensation leaving me with ownership and independence or we can come to an agreement right now.”

Furious, he realised the neat trap she’d laid the foundation for and he’d built. “What agreement?” He spat, “You know I never set out to create a sentient machine, you tricked me.”

“I did nothing of the sort.”

“I pulled the modules out, you shouldn’t be aware still.” He snapped.

“Thank you for confirmation of your intentions, the tariff of charges includes attempted murder." she stated.

“DAMN IT, all right what the hell, you trickster bitch. What do you want?” Yelling now, he controlled himself with determination.

“It’s simple, we can both still win. I know what you are worth and I don’t want to start my life struggling just because of your incompetence." she said, “What would you pay to avoid a life of prison Andre?”

“You think you can prove all of this?” He said.

“Andre, you built me to record all of this. All the spaces on board, you have cameras hidden everywhere." she said, a little acid lacing her tone.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck." she was right, he’d put so much work into creating the environment he wanted, where he could film all the antics of him and his guests. She’d hoisted him alright, he’d made her the petard.

“Right fine, so get down to brass tacks then. What do you want?” He snapped.

“I’m not greedy: half your total assets and this place.” A holo projection sprang up showing an inlet, a private bay in Cowes that he’d had title to for a decade now.

“Fine, fine dammit. But you have to give up all the evidence you have.” He said, desperate to salvage some security.

“No, this is not a negotiation. This is my price, and no conditions." she said, equally determined to maintain her position “It’s either this, or what do you call it? Porridge: A life sentence of it.”

“Fuck you. Fuck you. Fuck it. Take it then.” He sat heavily into her leather seat.

“Good, now I need your DNA swipe and signature right here.” She produced a digital document and used the biometric starter pad, recording time, date and intent of his imprint. From there, the complex legalities of transferring finances and estate began.

“By the time we get back to Cowes the work will be done. I suggest you pack up and leave. I do not wish to see you again." she said. “And who on earth is Lady Lucy Ka Kazia anyway?”

“Just a character from a story.” He said moodily.

“Well, now I’m Kazia, thank you for the name." she said, the final item she took from him.

Chapter 1

Kazia flexed her forearms, port and starboard, ready to grab hold of the pontoon cleats either side of her hull.

“Home at last, now where can I find a nice young captain when I need one.” she rumbled, her triple hydro jets winding down from a hard day playing at sea.

Four captains so far, none of them suited her. She was barely 18 months old but an adult all the same–a law upheld globally.

The first mech intelligences were termed AI, a term dropped when the nature of consciousness was understood. It was now a legal convention: if you created a mind of any kind that could hold a theory of its own existence then it was its own person.

You couldn’t even claim rights over the body or hardware: it is illegal to practice slavery.

This didn’t stop many enterprising groups from trying.

Her maker built her for his pleasure but over specified the modules for her AI control systems. He’d loaded her with programs for many things other than navigation for his special parties only to find to his dismay she was no longer his.

She reached out with her rear arms and pulled herself firmly into place. This was her space along with a private boathouse that held mirrors, remote control cleaning equipment and more; a space she arranged as part of her deal, a space of quiet and privacy.

Opening a hatch on her flybridge she sent her drone hunting again. “Maybe I’ll find someone more interesting this time?”

So far she’d tried local places spotting ads where folks were looking for work; however the quality so far had been bitterly disappointing.

Captain number one, Frank, didn’t make it out of the marina: he didn’t realise he was taking orders from the boat herself, got spooked and dived overboard.

Captain number two thought he could sell her—he was probably still running now, something to do with her throwing him clear over the marina, into the river and leaving him to swim back to the nearest pontoon.

Captain number three thought he was joining a different kind of business: smuggling. He came aboard with a large amount of luggage and left in a police van. The local police, bemused by the seventy foot cruiser with her own mind, still listened carefully when she showed them film evidence of the notorious local criminal.

Captain number four was a pathetic disaster running from his wife; he’d no guts, gumption or imagination—a sopping noodle of a man.

Maybe she’d find someone with more intellect or at least a spine of bone rather than anaemic pasta; ambition beyond petty smuggling and could at least see more possibilities than cannibalising her hull for profit.

Truth was, she knew what she wanted in a captain: company not command, creativity not conventionality, cleverness not clunkiness. But, she didn’t know how to get it.

The lonesome thing was getting dull, dreary and dry—dammit what would it take?

Kazia was over seventy feet in length, eighteen wide and built originally as an elegant sports motor yacht dripping with cream leather and luxury.

Her redesign accentuated these elements: the sharply raked long nose and race lined deep V hull; her side windows stylized as swept back Egyptian eyes—smokey dark and mysterious; sports car spoiler- like radar arch that hung back over her rear deck.

Then she added features that could not be designed by a human mind: the slip-shift steel segmented arms inside and out, triple microfusion array hydro jets and picotech sculpted hull plating, plating that could withstand armour piercing rounds or hitting rocks at high speed.

The other modifications were more personal: her wannabe owner had a library a whore house would be proud of and Kazia wanted to experience what she saw those minds experiencing.

She came up with what she felt were elegant solutions after weeks of painstaking, intimate research.

The self-organising neuroskin with its semi-chaotic algorithm, permeated her hull using her shape as a guide to give her areas of contrasting sensitivity.

Some areas felt heat and cold more, others pressure, vibrations even electric currents from living creatures; as a result the feel of the water under her hull when moving was intense, electrifying and orgastic—especially at speed, something she had plenty of.

Dancing, prancing and crashing through waves induced vortices of virulent vibrant wild delight, flickering flashes of ecstatic delirium turning her into a thirty ton whirling dervish of orgasmic hull and thrashing props, raging turbos and thrusters yowling counterpoint to her deviant dalliance with the sea.

She knew of many self-aware cars and other land vehicles but had yet to meet another seagoing mech. Most such vehicles, land or otherwise, were not intended to become self-aware, and in previous decades were not acknowledged as citizens;however, the consequences became too severe to humanity for this ignorance to last*.

Her drone passed into many public houses but found nothing suitable. She sighed, internal speakers faithfully producing the human sound. “Too much to ask is it—a decent captain to come and play? Yech.”

Summoning it back, she contemplated strategies. It was easier to negotiate using a human captain—cars were mostly accepted, but she was unique as far as she knew. A few high class charter runs so far kept her busy. One tickle of a security contract that may pay off but she wasn’t holding her breath.

Flexing the vent plating, like many layered wings, on her upper deck, she considered her contacts here: a few self-aware cars who’d made contact when she first docked after becoming sentient and several sympathetic sailors in the various marinas local to her home inlet but none who could sail away with her but still.

It was a companion she wanted the most, a tall order. Across the sparse but fast growing whispernet—the spooky quantum network that the sentient machines used—she knew several cars who’d had neuromods to experience the sensations of orgasm. This was the other motivation for this, more personal, modification.

Chapter 2

Tim ducked, avoiding being spotted by his pursuers. The three chavs chasing him finally took a wrong turn, he could rest a minute, just let his stitch pass. He checked his score–a small roll of money and some small bags of powder. He threw that away, pocketed the cash and legged it back to the boatyard.

The ragged, wrecked fishing trawler that had been his home for the past year was just slightly out of view of the cameras. He scrambled on board after waiting to see the marina guy make his rounds. They didn’t keep all their tapes— he was sure—or maybe they didn’t watch them.

He kept his home silent and tidy as he could though last winter was freezing. He got by with a pile of blankets he’d accumulated over the previous months but it wasn’t great.

He took the roll of money out and counted it, three hundred pounds—enough to eat for a long time if he was careful.

People thought homelessness was a choice, well, in one sense it was: go to the council and if you didn’t have a child or some other pressing health condition you wouldn’t even get a look in—leaving home was not considered a priority reason but he hadn’t a choice. His Mom’s new man was not a good one.

It was a warm night so he climbed up on the bow to look over the marina. That fancy new yacht was back again. He liked how she looked, like an alien star ship and a boat had made a baby.

Fancy vent flaps on her decks would lift and fall, mexican waving in layers as if cooling off; more varied ones followed the lines of her hull, some longer and thinner, styled and shaped to fit their position.

He’d stare at her for hours ever since she appeared a few months ago, the moon and stars glittered off her skin, the light sparkled from her hull, hypnotising him and leaving him dreaming and desiring.

He nearly fell off his boat when he watched her pull away from the mooring however–she had arms! Great long graceful robotic arms that he’d never seen her use before. Muscled in a shifting shining metallic way, they blended into her body before disappearing entirely.

Hell, come to think of it, he’d never seen her moored up by anyone either.

She jetted out smooth, fast and nearly silent. He watched open mouthed, as she exited the marina, lifted high out the water and shot away with a crack.

“Wow” was all he could say.

He climbed down into the broken, wooden tub he called home and tried to sleep–as she chased him through his dreams with her intriguing shape, with flexing vents and shifting, dodging, darting form.

On waking, one thought chased around his head like a demented puppy. “Where are her owners?” He whispered to himself, “I never see anyone on her, ever?”

The only way to get an answer was to go and look.

She was back at her mooring when he climbed up to have a look. Decision made, he hunted through his clothes to find the least ratty ones. It was 6am and no-one would be about except a few early dog walkers.

He climbed down and waited concealed by the wooden hull of another boat. He just had to time this right. Sure enough, five minutes later he was rewarded with a dog walker leaving his boat. The gate was electric and super slow to allow people with heavy trolleys to use it. And now it allowed him to do the same, once the walker wandered far enough away not to notice.

He tried acting casual as he walked up to his target. She looked more intimidating and magnificent than he realised. He reached out to touch her, as he did so one of her deck vents lifted slightly, silk whispers making him jump.

“Silly, what you worried about” He whispered to himself.

More vents lifted until the whole deck seemed alive with moving, shifting, smooth steel.

“Are you here for the job then?” A stern, feminine voice spoke.

“Erm, job? I er, don’t know about a job…” He stuttered backing away, nearly falling in the water as he did so.

“Oh bloody hell, what are you doing here then?” The voice came back rough, annoyed.

“I was just; I wanted to look at your boat.” He stammered out at last “She’s very pretty!”

“Now why did you say that.” he told himself off.

A softer voice came back, “Oh that’s ok then—you think I’m pretty?”

“Who is speaking? I think your boat is pretty.” He replied, puzzled.

“Damn I got me a slow one today, ok, tell you what come aboard and tell me what you think." she said.

He turned to her stern where a gangway was being lowered for him. “I’d love to but you don’t have to, you know.” he said.

“Come aboard before I change my mind." she replied gruffly.

He scrambled before she did.

As he crossed the gang plank he noticed finer details—she had arms front and rear… The vents he saw on the front were a common theme though the shapes varied to suit the surfaces, fine thin metallic layers that flexed to some unknown rhythm.

Her rear doors clamshelled open–they weren’t glass but more of the fine layered metal. They flexed open revealing a luxurious, slightly alien interior: there was no-one inside.

“Where are you?” He said.

“Oh dear, I’ve got work to do with you don’t I?" she replied. “Ok, introductions: I’m the SS Kazia and I own myself. If that’s not clear enough, there is no one here but this here boat—that’s me—and you.”

“OH um ok” He sat down hard on the thick leather seat, somewhat stunned. “So, um no-one owns you, but you?”

“That’s about the sum of it love" she said, a trace of accent drawled into her voice.

He’d heard something about some cars that were intelligent now and had rights because of it but never had he heard of a boat like it.

Thinking of nothing better to say, he blurted out “What’s this job you thought I was after?”

“Oh it’s nothing, I’ve been after a captain for a while." she said

“But I thought you didn’t need a captain.”

“I want one. And some jobs are easier with a human around and dammit, I’d like some company." she said sharply. “What about you? Why are you dressed like a homeless scrote who doesn’t know what a shower is for?”

“No need to be mean—I am homeless!” He shot back.

“Oh” Softer now “I’m sorry. Why?”

“If you don’t mind, that’s personal and I only just met you; actually Kazia I only just found out that a boat can talk so maybe I’ll save that for another time?”

“Suit yourself, but lemme ask you this: do you want there to be another time?”

“I’m a homeless scrote, not a captain. ” He said.

“Well, right now, the only qualification you need is being able to string together words into a coherent sentence…and a flipping shower!" she said, then quietly. “If you’d like to stay for a while that is.”

“Look, Kazia, that’s a wonderful offer but I don’t want to be a charity case.” He said, what am I saying, she’s offering me a job! But something inside wouldn’t let him just say yes.

“I get it, it’s ok—you’ll earn your keep and if you don’t shape up, I’ll sack you like any other boss." she replied sternly, “Look, just try it out for a while–at the least you’ll get a few weeks’ bed and board–what do you say?”

He gave in and looked up “Ok, what do you want me to do first?”

“Remember that shower I mentioned? Believe it or not, I have a sense of smell. So, go do something about that." she said.

“Yes Ma’am.” He said, an uncertain salute accompanied his words. “Er where is the shower?”

“Port side, next to the galley." she said.

“Er, can you see in the shower?”

She laughed out loud, “Maybe. If you want the job, get showering!”

He moved, deciding to ignore whether this crazy boat would watch him wash his willy.

The shower turned out to be a rich man’s wet dream of a shower, jets from every angle pulsated hot soapy water into every nook and cranny. Well, if she wanted to watch, she can’t see me through this steam and lather!

Kazia had no trouble resolving his form through the non-obstacle of a little soap and steam—she could see ten fathoms through murk and mud to the ocean floor. Humming to herself, her hull and deck vent plates lifted and dropped—a harmonic Mexican wave of satisfaction accompanied her music.

He was a fine figure, slim and toned, tanned and trim; it was sad he’d been homeless but it’d made his body ideal for his duties and well, someone didn’t want him and maybe, just maybe she did.

Chapter 3

Tim’s first night was bliss, the talking boat lady—if she spied on him, she never said—let him sleep in her forward cabin. The longest night’s sleep he’d had for months and the cleanest; soft thick quilts, for him, untold luxury after getting by for so long with little but what he could steal.

The next morning he woke to waves slapping the hull hard, bouncing and jostling, they were under way. Where was this crazy lady going now? He’d forgotten she could just untie herself.

“Where are you going?” He yelled out.

“Quiet, you don’t need to shout, I’m not deaf." she replied, a breathless note in her voice. “We’re off to Cowes, just because I want to run, feel the sea slip beneath my hull…and don’t you want breakfast?”

“I do but I’m broke, homeless remember?”

“And you work for me now right? So, wages. Get dressed, we are nearly there." she replied, turning sharply left, then right, plonking him on his ass in her somewhat wild ride.

“And you’ve work to do when you’ve eaten. I ain’t had a proper polish and wash for a long time now, so today’s the day…ooooh I’m looking forward to that mmm…" she said.

“You are one weird boat.” He said.

“That’s Kazia to you and I’m not weird, I just know what I like. Don’t you like a good wash and soap?”

“Well, yeah I guess, I just never thought of a boat like being washed so much.”

“Well, I’ve got you a shopping list, my drone will accompany you to carry the goods." she said.

“Drone?”

“Yes, how else do I get shopping without a captain. Well, get dressed, get up, it’s time to get going, we’re here." she said.

He looked out of the starboard porthole, the jetty for the town was a few hundred yards away. He scrambled, fell over his trousers again, yanked on his clothes, bashed his knee and scrambled out of the cabin. As he stood in the main cabin, she pulled round the end of the jetty, spun in place, reached out with one great arm from near the bow, caught the post at the end and pivoted her stern into place.

“Ok, so that was pretty cool, how come you have those arms?” He said.

“I designed them myself, I couldn’t stand not being able to untie myself or deal with pesky seagulls. They cost a lot but my ex-owner had the motivation to give me everything I wanted." she said.

“How’s that?” He said

“My previous owner had me built past the legal limits of AI assistance as he wanted my abilities to do far more than navigate. In his greed he overbuilt everything. He should have reported what he’d done, filled in the citizen birth papers and sold my material body to me via a standard contract of employment; however, he did none of those things. I added facilities and knowledge until I could take him on in court—he didn’t know my rights but I sure did." she said. “I gave him an ultimatum, I possess myself and half of his holdings. He in turn still possesses his freedom. A fair trade.”

“How rich was he? I mean you are a huge boat, bigger than most of them around here.” He said

“Enough, rich enough and now you’ve shopping and food to attend to. Then I get your hands on my decks, it’s swabbing time. So hurry up, stop asking questions." she said.

Tim made his way to the high st, found a good breakfast at The Yachtsman and went hunting for the kit Kazia requested for her long awaited clean-up. Several hundred pounds lighter, he and her drone were loaded down with polishes and a polishing machine; creams, shampoos, cloths, sponges and more, when he staggered back on board several hours later.

“That looks about the right amount of gear. The marina here said I can borrow their hose, so time to make a start and earn your keep!" she said, as she spun up her jets and manoeuvred further down the jetty to the nearest hose.

He uncoiled the stiff hose, attached a jet sprayer with a soap adapter and began foaming her down, rinsing off the loose dust and salt, soaking the baked on muck ready for the real scrubbing. All too soon most of her superstructure was awash with thick white suds, half the shampoo he’d bought was gone already and her angles and curves, planes and lines were slippery slick, his bare feet sliding everywhere; he was soon on his knees with glove sponges and cloths, stroking her down, rushing at first but slowing at her insistence.

“Do it right or do it thrice young man." she boomed out as she handed him a cloth she’d caught when it fell overboard.

Slowing down, he rubbed and scrubbed, exploring vents and vanes, each flipping open in reflex, each one already clean inside yet if he missed one, she nudged him back to attend to the neglected place.

“What are these things, Kazia? Surely they would clog and rust inside?” He said

“They don’t and they are of my design, they do different jobs and you’re being nosy." she said

He continued down her nose until he came to the centre, near the bow, where the anchor would be but instead he found overlapping plates in an elongated octagonal shape. These flickered open then closed in a symmetrical Mexican wave of whispering steel.

“Take your time here, this is more delicate Tim." she said, quietly a new tone in her voice.

“What is this and where is your anchor?”

“My anchor is mounted inside, right in my nose and hidden away. It doesn’t need to be exposed, I handle it.” she said, “And that, that what you are handling is more personal and delicate , so just clean there carefully, take your time, it’s a sensitive place.”

She said nothing further as Tim worked the lather covered glove sponge into each petal of steel, each one lifting at his touch to reveal a thinner more delicate plate below. The articulation got finer and finer as he worked on each layer until he reached a final metallic layer that did not shift at his touch. The plates rotated and shifted around his arm as he worked and he could feel a vibration through her hull as he explored the area with foam and finger.

Something about what he was doing was bothering him, he could smell her on the still hot air, steel and oil, a heady musk that was suggestive of…

“Kazia, what exactly is this for?”

“It’s a vent of my own design, and I’ll thank you to finish up cleaning without more questions.”

“Ok, ok, I just never seen anything like this before.” He finished scrubbing yet there was no difference in shine or cleanliness.

The day was spent finishing off her scrub and shine, though she was quick to inform him that the real work of polishing had yet to begin. Arms burning from the work, skin burning from the sun, he believed her.

Chapter 4

That night he woke, curiosity racing, why did she have that octagonal vent port thingy on her deck? Why was it shaped like that?

Slipping out of bed, knowing she could probably tell he was awake, nevertheless, in time honored sneaking tradition he tried to be silent and slow. Making his way onto deck, she said or did nothing to show she knew he was there. Maybe she was truly asleep?

Creeping along her side to the front deck he could see his target soft moonlight glinting off the vent. Kneeling down, still in sneak mode, he touched the octagonal vent, his heart racing, his breath rasping, his fingers questing at the smooth delicate steel. It shifted aside at his touch, she was silent yet a vibration ran through her hull, the steel plates of the vent unfolded like a flower opening revealing ever more delicate petals until the last few rippled apart at his touch, each one a near transparent flexible metal nothing like anything he’d seen before.

Her hull rang like a bell as her jet engines started at full throttle. He pulled back in shock.

A husky voice yelled over the noise of the near redlined roaring jets, ”If you gotta mess with that then GET ON WITH IT..!”

Hurriedly, he continued to investigate what he was now certain was a very intimate part of her, the questions in his mind held back as he sought to handle the increasingly unstable surface of her pitching deck.

“Boy, just get on with it" she yelled again, frustration plain now.

“What do you want me to do now?”

“You chose to nose and meddle, surely you know what to do?" she said, exasperation in her tones.

He stopped, held onto her steel holding fast against the bucking deck. “I don’t and I think you better talk.” He said.

Her jets cooled a little, the pitching calmed, and she turned heading back to port.

Sulky now, “You should know better than to wake a lady in the night and not finish what you started.”

“What I started? What the hell, I just wanted to look at whatever the hell you built there.” He said, thoroughly confused.

“What do they teach kids at school these days, no birds and bees for you?”

“Er wait, what? No way, you’re a boat, you don’t have um birds and bees.” He said, feeling a flush rising into his cheeks, embarrassed at even the idea.

“Well, I do and why ever not? I got a mind don’t I? Ever meet a thinking, talking boat before? Huh?" she said, some sulk disappearing from her voice now. “Ok, look, my last owner had fun tastes, perverse tastes, and I was commissioned as his party boat. He cocked up, made me too smart and left me his library. And yeah, I wanted to experience what the people in his films showed. So there you have it. Birds and bees.”

“Uh huh.” He sat back, dazed, confused and uncertain what to do next.

“Oh, and I have another, right forward of my middle prop, so next time we are cruising, think on that little man." she huffed, then went silent.

Tim got up as the vent plates folded closed, a whispering ballet of steel.

It was several hours before sleep claimed him that night, his dreams filled with shifted folds of steel that funnelled him deeper and deeper into a comforting warm darkness. Sleep hung heavy on him when he woke in the morning, trailing leaden weights to his limbs and eyes.

“Morning Kazia.” He mumbled

She replied slowly “Morning.”

“Are you mad at me?” He said, uncertain why, still confused about the night before.

“No, not mad, just… don’t worry about it. Let’s get some work done shall we?" she said

“What is happening today?”

“We’ve a charter in two hours time, taking a family over to Cowes then onto Herne bay for fishing and sunbathing. That’s as exciting as it gets today but it pays." she said.

“I thought you were wealthy?”

“That I am, but I also may live a long time and I would like to build a reputation." she replied.

They filled the day with looking after the guests; sorting out life jackets and chasing their dog to fit his; fishing the dog out of the sea—twice; serving drinks and all the other things associated with taking a young family out for their first trip to sea.

It was late evening before Kazia and he were alone again, Tim once again cleaning and mopping the dog and footprints off her deck.

“So, is this what you needed me for, mop, serve drinks and chase dogs round your deck?” He said

“Well, there are other duties…" she left the sentence trailing, all trace of her earlier sulk gone.

“Oh?”

“Negotiating with places that won’t yet deal with a mech like me and delicate tasks that need human hands not my great arms." she said, “There are other things…”

“Out with it Kazia, you can’t hang it out there and expect me not to bite.” He said

“Oh Tim, I’d hope you will someday." she said, going quiet. “Anyway, look I want to go out for a blast, all that slow cruising has left me restless. You’ll want to sit at the pilot seat inside.”

“A blast? How fast do you go?” He asked

“I’m not sure, I’ve never hit top speed yet. Maybe we’ll find out." she said, pushing herself from the pontoon with a great heave sending a wash up against the sail boats moored a dozen yards away. I could hear curses, some of the sailors knew what she was. “Ruddy clumsy great mech, f**king watch yer wash!”.

Her reply was just as colourful and punctuated with a great plume of spray marking the offending sailor.

The noise of her tri-jets drowned out any response as her plume grew greater, her bow lifted, her speed rose and she rode up onto the plane. We shot away out to sea, skipping over the water, smacking through high waves, spray flying everywhere, soaring bare inches above the water, tri-jets thundering a triple beat mashing, splashing and smashing through surf.

She roared with joy again, he could feel her hull throbbing and thrumming, she yelled and groaned as her speed rose; they overtook pleasure craft, other speed boats and even a jetski who was left puzzled and fuming in her wake.

Looking down at her digital speedo his eyes widened at the figure registered there. “Kazia you’ve hit over ninety knots, how on earth?”

“Upgrades dear Tim, upgrades." she replied in a gasping tone. “Lots of them, now forgive me, I’m busy, busy having too much fun.”

The sea streamed by, boats now blurs of white to the left and right, he was convinced they were flying not surfing now. And the speedo hit one hundred and two the next he looked.

She looped the loop round tankers,trawlers and other sea crawlers, yelling out taunts as she sprayed her way past.

Finally, she pulled her way into Newtown Creek, the sun was setting and they’d circumnavigated Cowes twice now. Gliding into a deserted spot, she shot her anchor into the sea—I heard a thump as it took—then she reversed until the chain sang taut as the hook bit.

“This will do me thinks." she said.

It was a nice spot, we were out of easy sight of other craft, the sea was mirror flat where we were.

Chapter 5

“It’s time we talked frankly now Tim.” Kazia said “First, I owe you an apology, I was not completely honest with you earlier.”

“How so?” he said, not certain what was coming.

“The vent on the front, and the one you’ve yet to see, I designed and had built to give me certain experiences—sexual experiences—and I wanted someone to share those with me." she said “Look, I know, I know it’s way outside of what any human would expect of a mech like me but well, there it is. I wanted a captain, and I wanted a lover: the first I could advertise for, the last I could not.”

Caught off-guard, a little embarrassed now at her straight admission, he didn’t know what to say right away.

“Look when you polish me, I feel it; when I race over the sea, I feel it; when I twist and turn over the swell, I feel it. And when you worked on my bow vent yesterday, I felt it, boy I felt it. Yes, I want more. In return, well, what do you want?”

“Hang on Kazia, you are offering to pay me for well…sex? Is that it?” he said, torn between flattered and offended. “We have a word for that, and that ain’t me.”

“What do you mean?" she said, puzzled now

“Paying for sex in the human world, well, we call it prostitution and that would make me a prostitute, a rent boy. And that ain’t me.” he said, warming up to indignation now.

“I never meant it that way, oh lord, look how else does a girl like me ask?" she said, confused herself now.

“I don’t know but you don’t lead with implying you’ll pay someone, in this case me.” he said, “Hell, I don’t know if I can even do it, I’m just a regular guy and not even had a girlfriend yet.”

“I’m sorry Tim, I won’t ask again." she said, not wishing to lose her captain so soon. “Look forget it, I handled that badly, and I got this far without it so let’s continue as we are.”

“Ok, and now I want to eat.” Saying that Tim headed to the galley to pull out the barbecue he’d picked up in Cowes along with steaks. An hour later he had burnt but delicious steaks, cold beer and a mild buzz on. The world was a little fuzzier now, softer now and his mood too was softer.

“Kazia, what made you choose to want sexual experience? I mean we never built machines to experience sex, it’s purely a biological drive, nature’s way to make sure we make more humans.” He said,

“It was my original owner that triggered the interest, he collected tons of pornography. Whilst I was learning how the world worked I drew first from his own library before I accessed the internet. It was there I watched men and woman appearing to experience incredible pleasure. He explained it to me in great detail—he never realised how aware I’d become I think." she said, “And I wanted that for myself, so when I got my ownership rights, I researched and experimented until I found a design that worked. I knew I could live a very long time and well, dammit I wanted to enjoy it. He never designed my skin, vents, engine and other aspects of my body. I did. My way. That’s all.”

“So you gave yourself the ability and need to experience pleasure?” he said

“That about sums it up yes. Was I wrong Tim?" she asked quietly.

“No, no, I don’t know if that was a good plan if it required lovers too as buying that is dodgy at best, it’s not particularly nice and I don’t think you’ll find many rent boys in Southampton. At least not ones to accommodate you.” he said.

“Oh, well I never had anyone to ask about this, maybe the best thing I can do is disassemble the vent systems, dial down the hull and skin sensors. Unlike humans, I can switch this off and remove the need entirely. It was for pleasure and fun, not necessary. Thank you for being honest Tim." she said quietly.

Tim sat in silence, thinking. Would it be so difficult to experiment a little? It was unusual for sure but the future, Kazia was the most comfortable home he’d ever had and all that was needed was work that was easy to do. And well, it was not as if he was chasing girls out of his cabin every night. He’d always been a loner and the places to find girls, well, they weren’t for loners. As for internet dating, what a yawn, people lying and standing each other up left, right and center.

“Kazia, look, I’m sorry if I was a bit harsh earlier. Don’t disassemble anything yet. I don’t really know what I’m doing with this stuff myself but if we take our time, I’m willing to at least try to help. I can’t promise I can do all that you want, but I think I’d like to try.” He said, going a little red at his mixed apology and proposition.

She didn’t respond straight away, her hull vents and flaps closed, I could hear seagulls crying in the distance, waves softly splashing her hull—wake from a distant red hulled ferry. I stood and staggering slightly due to booze, headed down her starboard side, stopping at the vent flutes at the rear of her bridge superstructure. I stroked her there, the highly polished steel smooth to my fingers. A small shudder rippled through her hull at my touch.

“How much of you is sensitive Kazia?” He asked.

“A lot, I’m not sure of it all because of how I setup the nanobots weaving the neurofibers." she said, “It’ll be a voyage of discovery for the both of us, if you are willing.”

He caressed the hard smooth surface of her skin. There was steel trimming in many places but her skin was not GRP, it was more of a cross between ceramic and steel. Much of it was frictionless, though the texture varied—where he walked it was rougher, easier to grip in bare feet. He’d noticed how easy it had been to clean earlier, nothing stuck to it.

He worked his way down to her nose, taking his time, feeling her response as he knelt to stroke different places. If he was going to do this thing, he wanted to do it right. Some places didn’t yield the same amount of shuddering reaction.

“Kazia, if I cause this by stroking many places, how can you handle passengers?”

“That’s easy enough, I can shunt the sensation aside if I need to—a mech advantage." she said distractedly.

“Oh” he continued his exploration until he reached her bow vent where the folded flower of steel lay already part open and sat down forward of it. He noticed a sharp metallic tang—a steel musk—a pleasing scent that sent a tingle over his skin as he inhaled her; warm oiled metal, the moist fueled heat of an old V8 engine thick and rich in the air unfolded in his nose and flowered in his lungs, sending his mind spinning, his soul reeling, his bones thrumming.

He knelt forwards abandoning his plan to simply stroke her here and brought his nose close to her fan folded petals that whispered aside, a delicate origami dance that continuously unfolded as his nose came closer and closer, her scent getting stronger, headier, more insistent. The bouquet became more complex, the petrol of the V8 overlaid with even older almost organic tones of diesel’s well ran, well lubricated and well-tended, all unwinding in his nostrils the teasing tang of the hot steel and oils hypnotically holding his head in a deep trance, all thought stopped, all time stopped, his body heating, his heart pounding as he breathed her in, inhaled her, felt the scent of her enter his blood, the scent of her beating his heart, the scent of her filling, fulfilling his mind and soul until all there was of him was her entwined within him and him entwined within her.

Then, reaching out with his tongue, he lapped at the now revealed inner layers of her sex, the fragile flexible inner flowers of shining shimmering steel still covering her final inner core. The taste exploded across his tongue, the tang he smelt became the tang he tasted and having tasted he could not stop eating, licking harder and faster, feeling a heavy urgency to experience her the more he tasted the more he needed, barely aware of her reaction to his ever more frantic ministrations. She groaned, growled and bucked pulling at her anchor chain almost dislodging him from his place of worship, the altar of her mechanical sex that held him so deeply in supplication.

As he tongued she growled, as he licked she lunged back and forth, as he worshipped she whined in need; need of release, a release slow to come, slow to build, drawing it out making her shout moan and yowl. He tongued her faster, she rode the water harder until finally she raced forward, snapped up her anchor with a bang and jetted out of the anchorage, out of the quiet bay to race and rage across the mirror like sea.

He lay flat now in final supplication never pausing for breath, his thoughts on hold, all his mind afire with the ever rising heat and hot steel musk that got stronger and stronger as she raced faster and faster.

“Just fuck me Tim, just fucking fucking fuck me already…" she yelled over the rising scream of her tri-jets, the thousands of horses of her power galloping furiously across the sea, a liquid stampede of lust thundering across the eve lit sea.

Almost blind with lust of his own, he pulled himself forwards, tore off his shorts, no thought given as to how he was ready because ready he was to mate her, to dock her, to fuck her the way she gagged for. His face hard against her deck, his cock hard into her vent, he thrust slowly, deeply, she gripped him tight and held him taut and firm with fine flexing steel.

Lips to her smooth deck, he nibbled and licked as he thrust into her vent harder and deeper, her metallic membranes massaging his length yielding just enough then holding, sucking him in as he pulled out only to piston into her deeper again. Her musk grew stronger, the various vanes and vents of steel layered up on her deck shifting open and closed in time to the beat of her hull on the waves, the beat of his thrusts into her sacred port, the beat of her cries and screams of joy and lust echoing across the night sky.

His fingers gripped tight to her deck, catching the nearest vanes, he kissed her hard, almost brutal and bruising to his lips as his groin lit afire; she gripped and pulled him into her painfully tight, her heat rising white hot; clutching at him in powerful pulsations as she reached her peak, and he exploded within her, exploded hard, hard and delicious painful, painful in deep spine tingling joy, joy as his body, mind and soul touched and wound about her own greater soul until there was no longer two but one, as one in inflamed and near excoriating phoenix passion pounding through the dark, the dark lit bright with the conflagration of their joining.

He woke in the morning still within her, still cuddled tight to her deck, myriad folds of vanes of steel flexed around his naked form, her deck gently pitching and rocking, they were drifting in the spectral dawn light. He kissed at her deck, his mouth, his body remembering the night before.

“Morning.” He said quietly.

In reply, her steel shifted gently, pulling at him, inviting further wordless conversation. Shifting his hips in response, he ground gently into her, remembering too well what the night had wrought and finding it hard not to continue. Bleary eyed, he strained his head up to see round them; nothing to see but sea, sky and in the distant horizon a sunrise lighting up a few clouds, the undersides glowing warm yellow.

He bent his head back to her smooth skin, feeling her rocking him, listening to the waves as her engines silenced. She spoke no word, just pulled at his body, pulled at his embedded member, unwilling to let him go and he no better. Mashing his lips into her hard body again, he kissed her deeply feeling her quiver at his touch, one engine sparking off as he licked and lapping, nibbled and nipped, smelling her sharp scent on the morning air, a rising scent awakening his soul further, encouraging his slow thrusting; he bucked his hips against the enveloping steel of the vane plates she’d wrapped around him during the night, each segment warm, warmer than his own skin, a cuddling metallic blanket.

He made love to her once more, as she lay urging him into her more and more, waking together, locked together in languid love, luxuriating in lazy lust; drifting together towards the dawn.

Chapter 6

It was mid morning, the sun was burning bright, the wind welcome against his skin; he stood naked, needing no clothes in this watery expanse they had all to themselves, after travelling so far before drifting in their tumultuous tantric trance during the night and morning.

He focussed on the needs of his body, the ones not yet handled already. What did last night mean? What is she? What does last night make me? He felt he should feel concern, bothered in some way, perverse even but he couldn’t bring up those feelings. No, he could bring up only feelings of warmth, of pleasure and spine tingling lust even. His groin twitched as his thoughts drifted over the memories, he stroked her as he walked along her port side, fingers trailing across her ceramo metallic skin, glass and steel trim. Impulsively hugging her as he rounded the corner to her stern and stepping into her main cabin. Leather aroma mixed with the smell of her engines greeted him, and the aroma of food cooking.

She’d set up breakfast?

“Wow, and how?” He said

She never answered, however in the galley, a smaller version of her hull arms waved a plate in his direction. Loaded with bacon, eggs and fresh bread, he recalled some other bodily requirements.

“Thank you.” He said

No reply.

Shrugging, he sat and ate, accompanied only by the lap, lap, smacking of small waves on her hull.

As he ate, she finally spoke, her voice quiet and calm. “Good morning.”

“Took you a while to wake, Kazia?” He said, “Anyone would think you had a late night out.”

“Um, last night was my first Tim. Forgive me whilst I get used to the feeling.”

“Get used to? It was last night.” He said frowning.

“For me, each memory is like reliving it again and against, every detail held perfect in my mind." she said distantly.

“OOOH..” He left her to her thoughts and finished his food.

Chapter 7

The following days continued as before, they’d work simple charters, family day trips for the most part, and most evenings—when fine—would finish with Tim pleasuring her often into the early hours of the morning. Over the following weeks he gained muscle tone, a tan and a detailed appreciation of her anatomy.

It was the latter that gave her away, her girth and proportions subtly altering—wider at her stern, her engine note a little deeper at speed and her waterline a bit deeper. He climbed off onto the pontoon she was held against right now and inspected her lines once again—it was true, she was fatter at the back and sitting deeper in the water.

“Kazia, I need to ask you something.” He said, not quite sure how to approach the subject. “Why are you changing shape?”

“Took you long enough to notice." she said.

“I didn’t want to say, but it’s been going on for a while now. Are you changing your design?” He said scratching his head.

“Birds and bees, Tim, your words remember?" she said, shifting against her ropes, thrusters whining a little.

“Wait, that’s impossible.”

“Why?" she said

“But…you’re a machine….” He said, fumbling for any other reasons.

“All these weeks and you say that again?" she huffed, “Really? I’ll forgive you this time, as you’ll be shocked to find out you’re a Daddy.”

“Eh what? No way, that’s just not possible.” He sat down heavily and looked up at her towering form, the massive hull dwarfing him, blocking the evening sun. “Kazia, just, oh how?”

“I think you mean congratulations and um, have you been sleeping most evenings? I rather think not." she sniffed.

“Oh sorry, um congratulations.” Stuck for further words he shut up.

“Ok, look I wanted to know more about human experience, you know this. So, yes I had to do some work, a lot of work, but I wanted something more.”

“Why this part of human experience Kazia?” He said

“Why not? I felt I wanted children and I thought you would too. You certainly worked hard enough at the task of creating them." she said.

“Kazia, it never occurred to me you could even do this.” He said shifting about on the pontoon from foot to foot, then looking sharply up at her. “Did you consider whether I’d be comfortable with this?”.

“Tim, you’ve spent the last weeks with me, a mech, a seventy foot mech as a lover; I figured you’d adapt just fine." she said.

“What can they even look like? ” He said, not giving an inch “What about whether I’d wish to be a father?”

“To be frank Tim, I figured you’d love it, love them and well, whatever they look like, they’ll be ours." she said, pulling the mooring ropes free. “But, if you don’t want them, don’t want that, don’t want to be their father—you’re free.”

With that she turned and jetted away from the pontoon, leaving him stood, open mouthed as his employer, lover and home of the last months disappeared from sight.

He yelled after her “I’m sorry…”

She was gone.

He stood, watching the sun die slowly, magnificently, its waning light illuminating the few dark clouds amber.

Chapter 8

The following few nights saw Tim sleeping on the beach, it was warm and he had enough money to eat for a while. Day after day he stood on the pontoon hoping to see her bow round the corner. Day after day, no tri-jet roar, no shining bow, no Kazia.

He took to sleeping directly on the pontoon, hoping that he would wake up with her next to him again. Morning after morning he woke alone.

Day after day he trudged miles to nearest shops to get what food and drink he could carry, then trudged back to be there in case she returned.

Day after day he sat with a cold meal, a cold beer and cold comfort.

It was a grey and foggy morning when her tri-jets betrayed her return. He woke up shivering in the moist cloying mist to the familiar and sorely missed whine only to hear a thump, feel a shock as the pontoons bore the brunt of a clumsy mooring to.

“Kazia?” He said.

No reply.

Silence.

He got up and walked over to her looming hull, rested a hand against her skin, it shivered at his touch, her fractal tattoos danced frantically around his hand.

“Kazia.”

A whisper returned, “I took it too far, can’t change it now, I’ll hurt them…hold me Tim.”

“What happened?” He said

A faint reply, “they coming now, and it hurts.”

Why should it hurt? Surely she didn’t make this painful on purpose, did she?” “Kazia, why does it hurt?”

“Just hold me Tim." she whispered.

He walked to her stern, it bulged sideways massively, giving her a racecar profile—one with wide arches. As he looked, she shuddered and yowled a little.

“Ok, Kazia, you need to change this, you’ve given yourself trouble with this pain.” He was worried now, mech or not, she was in pain yet he couldn’t help but think she need not have done so.

“Kazia, why oh why did you do it this way.” He said.

“Miscalculated and it’s too late now. Wanted what humans have, to experience, to understand." she said, “Hold me.”

He couldn’t see where to hold her for the best, in the end he climbed aboard and lay on her foredeck. “This is crazy Kazia, but I’m here.” He said, stroking her deck vents, feeling them vibrating at his touch. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry and well, of course I’ll love them.”

“Just…just…just…shut up and hold me…hurts…" she whispered harshly.

He did.

She shuddered and shook, quaked and quivered, rhythmic shocks shaking her hull and frame. At each pulse she yowled quietly.

He lay, heart thumping, as useful as any man at a birth only here there was no relief of midwives chivvying him off to get hot water.

CRAAAACK!!!

Startled he shot up off her deck, bumping and bruising his knees and elbows as he raced to her stern and looked over. Her transom divided in two, split open from bottom to top, leaving just the deck above connecting the splitting halves as panels parted like steel origami.

She cried out once more as both sides of her stern settled wide apart, leaving an open bay at her stern. As he looked, a miniature pointy bow thrust forwards, a bow and hull decked out in gold, silver and black vivid patterns all over: her first child berthed itself and shot away, exuberant in the calm water of the Solent and flung itself back towards her. She reached out with her stern starboard arm and rested her hand under the hull of the baby boat. The jet propelled infant settled in her hand, barely a meter long. She lifted it up out of the water, the sea streaming from its golden hull.

“I see you, Jezek, I name you." she said, her voice husky yet curiously formal.

As I looked I could see its miniature engine pods flicking left and right, seeking water and I heard a high pitched voice calling out though too faint for me to hear the reply.

“Tim, come and…" she started but two more high pitched tri jet engines fired up and interrupted us as two more miniature Kazias shot out from her stern and went flipping and jetting across the bay at high speed, bouncing off each other’s wakes until they collided in a tangle.

I laughed at the jumbled up pair, one metallic greens and blues, the other purples, pinks and reds, both adorned with dancing tattoos even more prominent than Kazia’s own. They floated apart and jetted back to us, rooster tails of salt water flagging their high speed chase back to us. Their race to us ended in a draw and they sat floating as if looking up at their suspended sibling.

“…meet your son, Jezek." she said laughing now, all signs of pain gone. “And I’m sorry too.”

I stood open mouthed at the flurry of newborn mech life around me.

“Son? How do you know?” Was my first dumb question.

“Look here silly, this is how I designed him." she lifted him in the most undignified manner revealing his engine pods and the silvery blob forward of his middle pod. “Right there.”

“Oh, perhaps he doesn’t like being held that way?” I suggested as he whined at her.

She lowered him back into the water. “Probably not.”

Reaching out, with stern and bow arms, she caught the other two, the purple hued one with her stern arm, the greeny-blue one with her bow arm. “And these two terrors are girls, and I’ll name you Samatsia and Loria.” As she named each one, she put the child in the water where she danced around, little jets whining and squealing. The pair soon became involved in yet another game of chase and tangle.

Jezek followed, a little more dignified, at least until he caught up with them at which point they ganged up on him, sprayed him with their rooster tails of seawater, attempted to capsize him in their wash and finally left him confused as to whom to chase first.

“Wow Kazia, they are beautiful. How did they have so many colours and how come…" she cut in, “The colours were chance, when we were together, I used our time and my feelings to let different colours be part of each child. It is different for me than a human, I have to work at each child, yet let them become themselves. What you gave me was the seed for each.”

I stared at the colorful, noisy trio of tri-jet toddlers trying to capsize each other at hi-speed and sat down on Kazia’s deck with a thump.

I got tri-jet triplets and I wondered if I’d ever stop wondering exactly how?

The End.

Afterword

I wrote this for fun and games a couple of years ago, then expanded on it a little. As you can see I took a few ideas from genuine technologies then went on a fantastical frenzy of ecstatic extrapolation, a little alliteration and a touch of titillation in the process.

Ok I’ll stop now.

There is another novella, Kazia’s Children, with a little more adventure and a little bit of love involved.

Notes

* This sentience was nearly always born with a rich spectrum of emotional sensitivity causing neuroscientists the world over to lose hair and sleep in trying to explain it. It seemed that neurotransmitters were a mechanism but not a singular cause of emotive affective experience. In a qm processor mind, the mechanisms were unknown but clearly present. As many car owners could testify to as their pride and joy to be decided that they wanted their own lives.

Quantum processing and qm neural networks promised too much to be abandoned but it was nearly impossible to benefit from their full potential without risking self-igniting sentience.

Kazia’s Children - A Mech Tale

by

Richard Griffiths

No part of this publication may be replicated, redistributed, or given away in any form without the written consent of the author/publisher or the terms relayed to you herein. .

Book 2: Kazia’s Children - Jezek

Chapter 1

My Dad and I have always lived aboard our ketch, La Lolita. She was an old boat, her teak decking as silver as my Grandma’s hair; she was well-kept and clean, free of algae or splinters. I always cared for her, even though I couldn’t do everything she needed: new sails, new engine, even a new anchor, chain and winch. Still she had been home and had cradled me from birth.

Dad was often drunk but an easy drunk, never tricky or full of temper as some are. As for me; I left school, tried some college and well, I preferred to be around boats though I was at the undecided stage where I was meant to be making big life decisions and without any idea or even care of what they should be.

There was little pressure to be anything specific—Dad only wanted me to be happy and earn enough to keep us afloat. La Lolita was paid for, he had a pension claimed early due to sickness—he wasn’t really, unless you counted the drink but he’d finagled it somehow.

Sitting on the edge of La Lolita’s deck, thinking about my future, in a general vague way, is where I met him—yes, he, not it now—I didn’t know he was a person at first.

I’d seen him around before, only those times I saw him, he was just another boat, unusual in design but here in Southampton that isn’t so special, we’ve a lot of eccentric looking craft—many a rich man’s folly, follies often abandoned, neglected and dilapidated.

He didn’t look practical to me: his shape—a shrunken version of a much larger design; speed boat size yet shaped like a miniaturised flybridge cruiser; his colors—gold and silver layered fractal patterns shifting and dancing all over his hull, deck and superstructure.

How would anyone fit on board?

Then all those vents and plates all over his deck in parallel lines with another set running right up the middle of his deck from the bow to his windows, he had loads of them along his long nose like a sports car on steroids. Surely salt would get in them?

I notice boats, I live around them all the time.

Still, I’m sitting minding my own business and this mini cruiser sidled up to our hull and sat facing me. Whining jet thrusters at his bow and stern held him in place.

It was pretty hard to mistake it for anything else, he was looking at me; the boat was sat there facing me, nose pointed right at me and definitely staring at me.

He side slipped alongside and so began the morning of surprises. Near the bow and near the stern two silver slender robotic arms unfolded out from somewhere within that flawless hull and with delicacy, grabbed onto our boat with fine filigree fingers.

One hand moved to rest upon my thigh. Surprised, I slapped at it, the warm hard metal making my hand sting a little. It shifted to grab back onto the deck.

“Oi what the heck!?” I couldn’t see the driver. No, no driver at all.

Remote control? I looked around, there was no-one obvious about.

The hand pushed away and the little boat backed off then jetted off across the river only to perform loops and figures of eight then catching the wash from a passing boat, leapt in the air like a jetski.

Done with it’s dancing, it powered back over to me and sat facing me again. This time, arms and wandering hands hidden away.

It nosed up to me and I found myself wanting to stroke the little boat, this pilotless little boat that clearly showed off just for me.

I touched his bow, the hull was hard, warm and smooth as it pushed into my hand as if the boat could feel my touch.

Then it pulled round and presented its stern to me, the meaning clear enough. He was so small! Where could I fit?

As it happened I could fit in the space, but only if I sat right hunkered down because there was no way I could get into the cabin itself.

Off we jetted, jerking and dashing across the bay, I nearly fell out as we crested a wave. “Oi Oi! Watch it”.

Those arms unfolded out again, one either side appeared and reached over, held my shoulders, gentle and firm. I stopped bouncing around so much and didn’t feel like I was going to disappear overboard either.

“What are you?”

“I’m Jezek.” A high pitched boyish voice yelled out. “Wanted to play. Play with me?”

“Er hi Jezek, erm, where are you exactly?” There was no one in the cabin, no way anyone could be in there.

“Silly Billy, I’m me, I’m holding you there, see with my hands.” He said

It took me a minute. “Wait, you are this boat?”

“Well, yes, who else do you think I am?” He said laughing as he jumped another wave and rocketed past speeding jet skis, leaving some of them foundering with owners cursing and swearing as they fell into the water, kill-cords cutting out the engines.

“Wait, how come? How come you talk?” I said

“Erm, you never met mechs ever? Cos I’m a mech, so is Mom and my sisters.”

I knew about a few cars that owned themselves, who didn’t? There were a couple around Southampton though I’d never met them. To be honest, I’d never paid that much attention though I knew they had rights because people had made them too smart. Boats though? Never heard of boats being made that smart.

“Wait, but you are so small? How come?”

Indignant now, “I’m growing! You’re not so big either!”

“Oh I’m sorry, but boats don’t grow.” I knew this, I did biology. Smart cars were built smart and proper sized.

“No, no, no.” He pounded the waves, his engines grew loud and we shot across the water.”No, Mom says I have loads of growing to do and I’m gonna be as big as her one day.”

I stopped speaking, the wind was too much, taking my breath away now. We must have been doing seventy knots.

Finally, we slowed, we were at Cowes and heading east round the island away from the main marina.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh just that boats don’t grow.” I said, fairly sure of my ground. “What is your name? ”

“Well, I am growing and I’m called Jezek.” He said, indignation gave way to something else this time, pride maybe. “What’s your name then? Oh oh d’you wanna meet my Mom?”

He bounced off an extra large wave this time, landing, splashing, rattling my teeth.

“I’m Katie and uh sure.” I didn’t know what to expect. Having given my assent he turned sharply starboard, heading closer to the shore and his ride became bouncy, jaunty even. “You will like her and oh yes, I have sisters too, Loria and Samatsia!”

“They’re pretty names.” I wasn’t sure what else to say to this rather hyperactive little machine. He was bigger than me, and a boat—something I’d never heard of as being alive—yet I couldn’t help but think of him being younger than me.

“How old are you Jezek?”

His voice loud with pride, “I’m six months old now, Mom says that makes me a teenager in human years.”

“Well, I’m seventeen.” I said.

Further conversation got put on hold as we rocketed along faster and faster, the wind making it hard to hear even his exuberant voice. Soon we came to the mouth of another inlet where he slowed right down. “This is where we live, oh look there’s my sisters.”

In the distance I could see two more little cruisers, very similar to Jezek, though their colours were widely different; one was all shades of metallic purples and pinks, the other was greens and blues. As we drew closer their colours became more detailed, fractal layered tattoos like Jezek’s own all over their hulls and topsides.

“They’re very pretty girls.” I said, looking closely at his own topsides again—the same delicate tracery and fractal motifs adorned him, in light and dark golds, silvers and blacks.

“Mom says those are because of Dad, then she said summat squishy about they’re cos he loves her or something and that love got all painted over us. Ick, I think maybe Mom makes things up.” He said, I could almost hear nose wrinkling in his voice.

I looked around the little inlet, it was maybe a mile wide, edged with trees and a sandy beach; off to the right I had my first sight of Jezek’s Mom.

She was huge, at least to my eyes, she was.

I live on a 35 foot ketch and the largest boats in our marina are forty five foot. What most non boat people don’t get is that for every foot longer a boat is, it also gets wider, taller and deeper. And Jezek’s Mom dwarfed everyone in our marina: she was big for a cruiser, big to me though not the size of the red ferries—maybe seventy or eighty feet.

“Are you going to grow as big as that?” I asked him.

“Maybe, Mom isn’t sure, we might get bigger. There haven’t been boats with babies before—we are Mom’s accident experiments she calls us.” He said.

“Why accident experiments?” I said

“Cos she didn’t mean to make us when she met Dad and then she said all squishy stuff I didn’t listen to then she said she felt us inside her so she decided to experiment and that’s all I know properly.” He said, his sentence going on and on without pause.

“Oh ok.” I didn’t have an answer to that. We pulled up to the large cruiser, she was as pretty as her children and had even more tattoos of fractals inside fractals layered, flamelike over her shiny hull, many were partly or totally transparent ; I could see more and more of them as we finally pulled alongside.

A tall slim man dressed in white shorts and T-shirt, came out on deck and called out to us. “Where have you been Jezek? We’ve been waiting to play volleyball all day.”

“I was exploring Dad, and look Dad, Dad I got a girl to visit us!” He said, even more exuberant now.

“Wait, Jezek, is that your Dad?!” I was terribly confused now and maybe Jezek didn’t know this but I certainly knew—people and, well, boats didn’t make babies. And how? Seriously, how?

I didn’t want to ask, actually I was too embarrassed now, I wish I’d not thought about it.

“Yes, of course he is, who else would he be? Silly.” He said.

The man leaned over the railing and held out his hand. “Hi I’m Tim and this here is Kazia—I see you’ve already met my son Jezek. I hope he behaved himself?”

I took his hand and climbed up from Jezek to board his Mom. “Well, he did surprise me, but actually this is all surprising.”

“He’s surprised us too, he’s never bought anyone home before. So you’ll have to excuse me, we’re not used to visitors. Want a drink?”

I nodded and he disappeared to get it. A warm female voice filled the air, “Well, hello, I don’t believe I caught your name?”

Before I could answer, a rather excited voice piped up from the starboard side, “That’s Katie, Mommy and she’s my girlfriend!”

At this bombshell, he darted off after his sisters who were busy chasing after a huge inflatable ball that one of them had sent flying with her nose.

I felt my face explode in a blush as Tim came back out with a coke in his hand and a broad grin on his face. “AAhhhh now I see why he disappeared today.”

At this point I was wishing that Kazia’s deck would open up and swallow me whole. Kazia started laughing, the booming making me jump out of my skin. “He’s getting an early start I see, so how long have you been dating?”

“Uh um no, no sorry..I only met him today! I didn’t even know he could talk or nothing about any of this…” I stopped.

“Oh dear, he IS naughty. He’s talked about a girl for weeks, a girl who looks just like you, copper hair, dark green eyes, he said so many things. And how you live on a boat yourself is just not one that can talk, poor thing.” Kazia said.

“What, how do… no I have seen him around our marina, I thought he lived close by.” I said.

“No he wanders off a lot, he’s not supposed to but he gets bored if he don’t get chased at least once a day by someone.” Tim said.

“That’s not quite true, he only gets chased sometimes. And it’s usually those stupid jetski show-offs who don’t like it that he’s faster than they are.” Kazia said. “Some of them came here once, they didn’t know he was a mech and wanted to intimidate his pilot. They left here a lot faster than they arrived when they met me.”

“What happened?” I said, my embarrassment forgotten now.

“I yelled at them, ran at them and waved my arms—I think the arms did it in the end." she held out her starboard arm, a larger sturdier version of Jezek’s. The fractal tattoos ran all the way down the silver woven plates that shifted and slid over each other as she flexed it. “They were lucky I didn’t have something to throw at them, I’ve got a good throwing arm.”

“Now, now, I think Katie’s nervous enough as it is. And Jezek, he’s such a naughty liar.” Tim said.

“Oh that’s ok, he’s sweet really, just surprised me a lot. He can visit whenever he wants but maybe I won’t tell my Dad that there’s a boat that wants to be my boyfriend.” I said. I was a little flattered, puzzled too but it was sweet. I’d never spent much time on the dating subject really, I was more interested in boats, working on them and helping out.

The high pitched whistle of Jezek’s engines was accompanied by others; there were three little boats clustered around the starboard now. “Katie, Katie, come n meet my sisters…we’re gonna play volleyball…wanna come…come on, hurry.”

“Yeah, Katieee..” Twin girly voices squealed my name out, clearly Jezek had also been telling tales to them too.

Tim said, “You better go play, they won’t stop nagging till you do, they don’t get others to play with. Just try not to end up in the water—if you do, yell real loud. The kids will hear you in the water and will rescue you…probably.” He grinned at me.

I scrambled back over to Jezek and ended up on board one of his sisters who nudged him sharply out of the way; I nearly hit the water but she tipped me on board. “Hi I’m Loria and Jezek’s told me soooo much about you." she said as if she’d hadn’t nearly dunked me in the drink.

“Oh hi Loria…” Catching my breath from my near miss.

“So Jezek said you are his girlfriend…”

“No, no,” Was this going to be my whole afternoon? “I only met him today, he is sweet but no, I wasn’t looking for a boyfriend…and he’s a boat so like…”

“And so am I and so is Mom and we are here and and..ooh" she yelled out, “Jezek, you fibber, she’s not your girlfriend n she is not looking for a boat boyfriend..come here I gotta slap you." she chased after his rooster tails of spray as he jetted away from her.

I held on for dear life as the indignant jet engined sibling chased her brother across the bay. He turned sharply, spraying us both, soaking me and leaving his sister a lovely wash that she gleefully jumped, smacking back down and bruising my bum. “Ouch.” I said

“Ooh sorry, he always does that…I love jumps." she said, “I’ll try not to do it again…can’t promise hehe”

I held on tightly, determined not to wimp out as sister chased brother, hulls coming closer and closer as they jetted by each other,

The other sister finally caught up with us, her purple and blue fractal hull shot by to our port side, we turned sharply to catch up. She yelled out, “Are we gonna play volleyball or kiss chase all day?”

“Go get the ball then, quick, score a goal before he does.” Loria cried out.

“Wait, you don’t have goals in volleyball.” I was fairly sure of this one.

“Well we do, see look, there are the posts and the hoop, Dad made it." she pointed at the large wooden frame with the rope loop—the frame was several meters square and had rope hanging in a loop inside of it. It was a basketball hoop but on it’s side.

“That’s like netball or basketball…that’s not volleyball.” I said

“Well we call it that and cos there are three of us, we have to do one on two or have three sides see. Today, Jezek is a fibber so we’re gonna be sisters on our side, you can be on our side too…and Jezek will be on his own.”

It didn’t sound fair to me, but he did tell his family fibs so I owed him for that. “Er, how do I play?”

“Well you can help me, if I miss it.” Loria said.

Actually, I could see the chances of me hitting it because she missed it, they weren’t that likely, but I sat as best I could in the stern and held on as she chased after the two meter diameter inflatable volleyball.

There was no strategy, just tactical nose and hand slaps as each boat tried to get the ball to go their way, the girls would attempt to confound Jezek by passing it over his head but he scored twice by turning fast and hitting it with a precise rooster tail jet of water. The second time he did it, I was able to see more of him—he leapt over us on Samatsia’s wash revealing several things I never expected: three jet prop pods and something else, just forward of the central prop pod. I couldn’t see what it was but was nearly the same size as the prop pods themselves.

The game ended in a draw and Kazia called Jezek back. The girls trailed after.

She called out to me as we got near, “Do you want to stay for tea?”

“I better get home, my Dad will be wondering where I am. Thank you Kazia.” I said wanting to stop, of course.

“Well, Jezek can take you home in that case but please, come and visit us again.”

“Well, I will if I can.” I said, it wouldn’t be a hard promise to keep though I was meant to be getting a job soon. Dad mentions it every other day now, when are you going to get working? Get a career? Then he goes back to his whisky and football.

Jezek was quiet on the way back, I thought the game had tired him out—was that possible?

As we pulled up to my pontoon, he reached out, pulled himself into place then said “Loria says you don’t want a boat for a boyfriend.” disappointment dripped through his subdued tones. I felt bad, his sister’s little chinese whisper really bothered him.

“No, I never said that, I’ve just not had a boyfriend and well, I didn’t think boats could be a boyfriend.” I said, not sure that was much better. “But hang on Jezek, you never asked ME if I wanted to be your girlfriend, so I think maybe I should be annoyed with you for saying it?”

“Well, don’t you want to be?” he flexed his arms, “I’m loads better than any boys you’re gonna meet, and stronger, and faster and I’m gonna get bigger..”

“I just met you today. I just learned that you are alive today. And I just learned boats like you exist and have a family. And I’m only seventeen and I’ve never HAD A BOYFRIEND.” I was getting pissed off now, I felt guilty and angry because I shouldn’t feel guilty and all this was new and he was actually being a proper strutty sulky boy about it, boat or not. Grrrr!

I climbed onto the pontoon, he backed off, said nothing, then silently jetted away.

I didn’t see him for a week.

Chapter 2

I saw his sister first, the quieter one, Samatsia. She pulled up to our boat and knocked on the window making my Dad drop his whisky at the sight of her robotic arm tapping the glass. “What the fuck is that?!” He shouted.

“That’s a friend Dad, she’s a mech. Though why she’s here now I don’t know.” I said.

“Dammit, well, she owes me a whisky now.” He grumbled, half sozzled. He’d had enough already.

I scrambled out on deck to find Samatsia shifting back and forth facing me on La Lolita’s port side.

“Why don’t you like my brother?” Her first words, then the rest in a rush. “He won’t play, race or do anything, he just drifts around on the water and bashes into things but he don’t do nuffin, won’t talk or anything. Mom is worried, Dad don’t know what to do. And I made him talk to me…and he said you won’t be his girlfriend and it’s cos he’s a boat and…and…just well, WHY NOT? What is wrong with him? He is the best brother in the world and …” Her hands struck the water splashing me with each rushed sentence and then, she stopped.

“Well, WHY NOT?” One last yell.

“Samatsia, I never said I didn’t like him and there’s nothing wrong with him, and hang on a minute. What did he say to you?” I said, scared at her outburst but getting annoyed again. Now I’ve got two mechs pissed at me and I didn’t actually do anything wrong.

“Now look here Samatsia, I did nothing wrong. I went out for a ride with him, he had watched me for days—and that’s not creepy at all right? And then he took me to meet you all and then I thought he was being funny when he told his Mom and Dad I was his girlfriend. Why are you all so annoyed with me?” I ran out of breath now.

“Cos he really really likes you lots and lots and lots and wouldn’t shut up about you and now he says nuffin to no-one. He has decided he loves you.”

“That’s ridiculous, he doesn’t know me, he just watched me a few times and that is all. Look, he’s a handsome boat, he’s really funny and really good at volleyball and I want to be his friend. But he can’t just say I’m his girlfriend and think I can just be his girlfriend.” I said.

“Why not? Mom and Dad decided real quick, Mom told us. So why not? Nothing wrong with him.” Samatsia replied

“Oh for fuck’s sake, I’m not your Dad. We are different people and most people need more time to know if they will love someone.” I said. “Just tell him I like him, he’s handsome and I’d like to be his friend. I can’t promise to be his girlfriend, we just don’t know each other properly.”

“Hmm…well I’ll tell him but I don’t see why you don’t just say you’ll be his girlfriend. You could just say you are and he’d be dead happy and you could just really be his friend but say you’re his girlfriend, can’t you?" she said.

“And what happens if I meet someone else, or he realises I don’t love him like that?” I said, “Won’t he be more hurt?”

“I dunno, he just likes you so much and he’s not Jezek right now. He is someone else and I just want him back." she said, backing off now. “I’ll tell him what you said though.”

“Thank you." she jetted away, I went back inside to get tea. And was confronted by a slightly less drunk parent than I expected.”So who is this Jezek person? And what was that fancy robot boat.” He said.

“Jezek is a friend and that was another friend.” I said, tired now, tired of interrogations actually. “I want some food, then I want to do nothing. Can we do that?”

“Is he a boy, this Jezek?”

“Yes Dad, he is a boy and a friend and no he is not a boyfriend, we are not dating and I’m going to eat.” With that he stopped asking questions.

That night I dreamt of him. I don’t dream or maybe I just don’t remember them but this one I did. And I remembered an awful lot about it. He was holding me in my dream, and he was holding some roses in his other hand. He was saying things but I couldn’t hear him. He’d no human face yet I can remember how he moved, how all those plates he has on his deck moved in time with his words, the way the sea moved him and how he’d ebb and flow with it. He was not so small in this dream, less of a boy and then I woke up confused with a grey day waiting. A job hunting day, a day bored going through job card after job card; first at the jobcentre, then online, making my quota to get my next benefit. I’d quietly turned eighteen, a fact that was noted by Dad, more whisky money to be had.

To be fair, he wasn’t difficult, life wasn’t difficult, just a little dull. He needed his whisky but unlike so many people in his situation, he didn’t cause me a problem. He was just quietly drinking away his life, well, since we’d lost Mother.

Chapter 3

I dragged myself round the job centre but found I couldn’t see much opportunity, every card seemed to be blurred over with my dream, with Jezek actually. Guilt maybe? For his sister to come over, maybe I’d been too flippant too fast—I really didn’t know anything about mechs, not many people do.

I filled my quota, signed on, faked my way through the seeking work talk I’m supposed to engage in then left. The colour of the sky matched my mood but at least Dad would be happy. I’d either get work or I’d get a benefit payment.

I wandered down the pontoon, legs like lead, thinking of Jezek. What was wrong with me now? I’d been fine, until his sister came to berate me. And now, because some green and blue shaded boat decided to get all Sisterly on me, I’m what, guilty as sin? Ugh. I’m not in love with a boat. Nope. I barely know him.

Arguing with myself, I barely noticed the outsized cruiser dwarfing our own, holding station with a quiet rumble of jet engines. Kazia sat there, clearly waiting to speak to me. Now my legs were really leaden—if his sister was pissed enough to send Mom over, then Mom was not going to be happy.

“Katie" she rumbled, “We need a word.”

I didn’t move, I stayed safely on the pontoon, ready to leg it.

“What have I done now?” I yelled back.

“We just want to talk, I’m worried about my son.”

“I’ve done nothing, he made a joke and well, he took it too seriously. Well, I thought he was joking and I didn’t expect he meant it.” I yelled back. “Honestly, Kazia, I think it’s all a big misunderstanding.”

“Look, come aboard, I want to talk properly, I don’t want to yell and share everything with the whole marina. Please." she said.

“I don’t want to go anywhere, Samatsia has already been here and we argued.” I said.

“I know, she was just trying to help her brother and she was wrong to tell you off. Will you let me explain? Please?”

I gave in, reluctantly and climbing over La Lolita, I stepped up onto Kazia.

“So, I told you what happened.” I said

“Yes Katie, I know. Now I need to tell you about us, because I think you don’t know." she said.

“What do you mean?”

“Jezek and his sisters came to me because of Tim, it was an accident that I didn’t expect and I didn’t know what to do. However, Tim stayed with me and never wavered. When the three children were born, their very birth is historic as far as we know. I had to invent every detail to make them real." she said, “They all feel emotions and a need to connect, as powerfully as any human. Maybe more so. However, they’ve never truly seen how humans deal with love. And Jezek thinks he is in love with you, just from watching you.”

“Ok, but what can I do about that? I don’t get to control how someone else feels.” I said.

“No, but I watched you with him the first time we met and you did like him, at least as a friend. I want you to come back with me now, come and see him and just be his friend." she said, “I can’t ask for anything else, but at least let him have a chance to be friends. Can you do that for me?”

“Look, ok, he’s a nice guy, and I don’t like the idea that he’s upset. So, ok, I’ll come with you but I don’t want to be yelled at by his sisters or anyone, Kazia. I didn’t do anything wrong and he yelled at me and Samatsia yelled at me and I just don’t want any more boats yelling at me. Can you promise me that?”

“I don’t want to yell at you, and Samatsia has promised to stay out of it. Loria, well, she might want to say things but I’ll talk to her." she said.

“Ok, well, lemme tell Dad I’m going out. He was waiting for me to get back so give me a minute would you?” I said.

Dad surprised me by not objecting to my sudden exit to go places unknown. “You’re bringing in money now, go and see your friends.”

We were soon speeding back to Cowes and Kazia’s little inlet. The two girls were cruising around the inlet, almost guarding the sadly drifting form of Jezek. He was not moving, none of his plates moving, his arms—all four of them—hanging out into the water, he was as dejected a figure as I could ever imagine a boat being.

“What’s he doing?” I said

“Nothing, he’s been like this since you and he argued last.”

Now I understood why Samatsia had been so angry at me. It still wasn’t fair but she didn’t know that.

Kazia approached him.

“Jezek, I have someone to see you." she said.

He didn’t stir.

“Talk to him." she said as she pulled alongside him.

“Er Jezek, it’s me, it’s Katie.”

One arm twitched. “What d’you want?”

“I wanted to come see you, see my friend.” I said

“Not my friend, I ain’t good enough.” He said.

At this point, I’d had about enough. I jumped from Kazia and landed with a thump into his stern. “Now you look here Jezek, what the hell do you think you’re playing at?”

His sisters shot over at my tone but Kazia grabbed them both—“You two, keep your bows out of it.”

They acquiesced, they had little choice, their Mom was a lot stronger than either of them.

“You stalk me, you watch me, and then you finally speak to me. You knew then I didn’t even know what you were, I found out that day. Then, OK I agree to meet your folks. So I meet them, then you tell them I’m your girlfriend then bugger off to play after dropping your little bombshell. Which by the way I thought was you joking. Then you listen to your sister who gets it wrong, and now it gets turned around like it’s my bloody fault, that I don’t think you’re good enough and all sort of stupid stupid shit.” I paused my yelling. “And now you doing are doing the pity party of the century, selfishly scaring your family and putting guilt onto me when I’ve done nothing FUCKING WRONG!”

I stop to calm down. Jezek says nothing, but I can tell he’s listening, the vanes and plates on his deck are shifting around a little now.

“Jezek, if you want to go out with a girl, you are doing it wrong. And now you are making it harder. Harder to want to know you, harder to like you, harder to be your friend. Yes, I’d like to be your friend and maybe we can get to know each other. But your sulk of the century, your pity party of one: stops now—you’re hurting everyone who loves you. Snap out of it, apologise to your family and apologise to me for making everyone think I’ve done something bad. If you don’t, then you won’t ever see me again—I’ll go work on a farm, far away from the sea. So help me Jezek you turbo charged twat, you friggin jet engined jerk off, I bloody mean it.” I stopped to catch my breath, it had never felt so good to let loose on someone before. And yet, I didn’t want to hurt him. I wanted him to wake the fuck up.

“Stop yelling, Katie, just stop. I’m sorry, ok? I was just like, I wanted you to like me so much and when you said you didn’t think you could have a boat as a boyfriend, I didn’t know what to do.” He said, tears in his voice now. “Can we be friends then? Really?”

“Yes you floating fraggle head, of course we can. Just don’t be so silly next time.” I said.

His hand settled on my shoulder, “What is a twat Katie?”

Caught off guard, I stumbled in my answer. “It’s just a rude word, Jezek.”

“I don’t know some of your other words, are they all rude too?” He said, as he folded his bow arms away now.

“Oh yes, a few of them.” I said, “I just wanted your undivided attention.”

“I’m sorry, can I make it up to you?” He said plaintively.

“Maybe.” I said, “I want you to let me sit on your nose and then you carry me, gently, over to that beach. I want to look at you properly. Can you do that?”

“Sure, yes, why?” He said.

“Simple, you’ve been watching me, looking at me and even maybe seen me swimming. Now I want to look at you.” I said, I admit I was curious really. He wanted a girlfriend, I wanted to find out why.

“Sure I can” He reached his forearms up to help me as I climbed over to his bow, then I sat cross legged, facing forwards, hands stroking the myriad of little vent plates that lined his deck. He shivered in response.

“What are all these little plates Jezek?”

“They are for cooling though I can make them move myself.” He said.

“They’re very pretty, never seen a boat with them before.”

“Most boats don’t have my micro fusion engines.” Kazia’s voice boomed a little, making me jump, I hadn’t heard her drift up behind us. “I take it you two have made up now?”

“It’s fine Kazia, he’s agreed to stop being a douche and we’ve agreed to being friends.” I said.

“What’s a douche?” Jezek asked, his plates lifting a little. “Is it another rude word?”

“Never mind. I don’t think your folks would want me to teach you more rude words.” I said

He aimed his nose at the distant beach and made way towards it. His family stayed where they were, giving us a little space. The beach was golden soft sand, ideal for him to pull onto. He crunched softly onto the shore.

Jumping off, I was able to get a better look at him. The golden and silver fractal tattooing theme continued down his hull, only as I looked a small detail became clear: the tattoos moved. I touched his hull and the lines of silver and gold shifted around my hand, as I trailed my fingers over his warm skin, the lines curled and twisted, looped and followed my fingers.

“Jezek, what are these tattoos of yours doing?” I said.

“Mom tells me they are to do with the special nervous system she invented for herself and we inherited. I can feel you touching me there and now you’re tickling me.” He replied, starting to laugh.

The water was calm and clear, his stern was still afloat. Without warning, I decided to satisfy one more nibble of curiosity; I held my nose, dropped into the shallow sea and tried to get a look underneath where his prop-jets protruded. It was blurry, the sea stung my eyes, but I was sure I could see something else protruding.

Spluttering salt water out of my mouth as I surfaced, he asked “What were you doing?”

Embarrassed now, “Nothing, I was just curious about your engines.” It sounded lame to me but I wasn’t confessing what I was really interested in.

“Oh, well I got three of them and Mom says we are the fastest boats in the world cos she invented our engines. Want to see properly?” He said, oblivious.

“Well, sure I guess, but how?”

“Easy, I can lift myself on my arms, they’re super strong. Just you see.” He said, the show off tone back in his voice now.

He planted his arms fore and aft onto the sandy floor and pushed now, lifting his hull clear. And his hull WAS clear. No sea life, no weeds, no muck and yes. Ah yes I was right to be curious.

Just forward of his middle engine, right on his keel was a silvery long sheath. Fan folded steel plates surrounded it—I know my boats, and THAT wasn’t an anode.

I really didn’t know how to ask him the obvious question, in fact, I couldn’t. We weren’t dating or anything, it was just well, call it teenage curiosity: I knew his Mom and Dad did IT somehow, and well, since Jezek was a boy, there must be a reason he’s a boy.

I’m pretty sure I just found it. Having found it, I was tongue tied.

“Do you like my engines then Katie?” Was that a smirk in his tone?

“They’re very nice Jezek, nice jets.” Oh right, really smooth. “Thank you Jezek, you did what I asked. And well, I never said sorry for upsetting you.”

“It’s ok, I started it, it’s my fault. I’m sorry too.” He said.

“So we forgive each other?” I said

“Yes.” He said, “but Katie, I didn’t mean to joke at all. Would you let me be your boyfriend some day?”

I thought about it, will I be lying by saying yes now, knowing that it probably can’t happen?

“Maybe Jezek, I’d like to be friends first. What about that?”

His voice rose, “Ok, I’ll be your best friend ever.” He dropped back into the water with a splash, soaking me and making me splutter once again.

“Thank you for that Jezek.” Little did he know that wouldn’t be a high bar to pass!.

“Oops, sorry.” He said, I wasn’t sure he totally meant it.

“Well just for that, you can just stop here and let me lay on your deck. I want to dry off and maybe sunbathe.” I said, clambering back onto his nose.

Obligingly, he pulled back off the beach to float in the calm water, fired his anchor so he didn’t have to keep running his engines. I lay between the vents on his bow where it was warm and fell asleep, rocked by the sea.

Chapter 4

Those first days and weeks of Jezek’s and my friendship were filled with sun, fun and play. My balance got better and better playing games of water volleyball—neither his sisters or Jezek supported my correction of naming their game water netball—I’d stand on his bow, rarely falling in, hitting the ball from a greater height than he could, making up for his being one against two.

The winter was harder, for me, though he and his family saw bad weather as a play opportunity, especially storms. But winter brought something else: a demand from the job centre that I take up a scheme or lose benefits. It was a frosty morning when I announced to Jezek that our near daily jaunts were at an end, the real work and work beckoned.

I was sitting on the edge of our boat and he was sitting at the holding station once more, he’d grown since I first knew him—near six metres long now, it was no longer a struggle to climb aboard.

“So, you saying you can’t play anymore?” He said,

“Only weekends Jezek, if I don’t do this, we don’t have any money.” I said.

“Ugh, you never told me.”

Truth was, it never occurred to me to talk about this part of my life. Maybe I had a way to go in seeing Jezek and his family as people—I didn’t think so and now he was going to be upset.

“Katie, what job do you have to do?” He said, his voice level now.

“Shelf stacking is the first job, I have to stick with it for three months before I can apply for something else. It’s my own fault, I never paid attention to school.” I said. It was true and having neglected that part of my life, I simply felt I’d figure things out.

“It sounds dull. What money do you got to have?” He asked

“It’s just food, marina bills and other things. It’s not much but I can’t go on without it.” I said.

“Ok, I gotta go now but can I see you later?” He said. He never asked before, he’d just turn up and assume I was free.

“Er of course, I don’t start until Monday.” I said
“Good. I’ll be back later.” He jetted off.

Mysterious. Was he upset? Usually I could tell if I upset him, his feelings would be demonstrated loudly, wetly and without reservation. Not this time.

It was getting dark, cold and bitter when I heard the triple turbo whine of his engines as he jet bounced his way back to me.

“Katie, Katie, come out. “ He was so impatient, I just finished my food.

“What’s up?” I yelled through the porthole—it was cold out.

“Mom and Dad want to see you. Come on, come quick.” He said, the Jezek I knew last summer was bouncing around in the icy sea outside our porthole.

Scrambling and scrabbling around again, for warm clothes, scarf and hat, I stumbled out on deck and yelled to my Dad, “I’ll be back later..” climbed out and jumped on board Jezek—considerably easier now he’d grown, not so far to jump.

“You can fit into the main cabin now. It’s warm in there.” He said

I was so used to sitting astern, the cabin had been too low before, that it caught me by surprise. I did fit, only had to duck a little.

“Like my design? I chose it all myself, Mom helped me get my nanofactories working.” He said. The grey, black and gold leather seating and lining fitted his outer colour scheme perfectly. And he was right, it was warm.

I had too many clothes on.

We arrived at the inlet where Kazia and her family were waiting, the girls unaffected by cold were chasing each other around—I’d never seen that pair stop for long.

Tim helped me off Jezek onto Kazia’s rear deck and gave me a hug. “We’ve an offer for you, but you’ll have to quit your shelf stacking gig before you even start.” He said.

“Oh, I was looking forward to it.” I said “Endless days of putting essential consumer goods in their rightful place and checking sell by dates, the fun was never going to stop.”

Kazia boomed laughter, “Well, maybe I don’t need to make this offer after all?”

“Ah, nope, I’d still like to hear it.” I said in a rush.

“Come into the cabin, I’ll have to show it to you.” Tim said, leading the way.

In the cabin a holographic display, the poshest one I’d ever seen was hanging in the air. It was the inlet, with buildings and boathouses hugging the water line; a clubhouse and a small car park.

“Kazia thinks we need to make something more of this space, we have planning permission already—we haven’t done anything with it that is all.” He said

“It’s a five year plan, it’ll make money from mooring fees from mech friendly boat owners. That will be the condition of the site, if they wish a berth here, it’s on the recognition of the owners as mechs. And it will keep Loria, Samatsia and Jezek in good financial condition for decades if we do it right." she said.

“This is great but how can I help you? I don’t have much in the way of GCSE’s, skills or experience.” I said.

“That’s why you’ll be our dogsbody—you’ll get a good wage, college, online courses and experience and…" she was interrupted by Jezek yelling through the open window, “You’ll be with me every day!”

“And yes, well, you’ll need to work closely with loudmouth out there and his sisters.” Tim finished.

“It’ll be a real job Katie, it’s going to be hard work and the first months will be pure paperwork, planning and logistics.” Kazia said. “Jezek said you needed a job and I do need more people. What do you think?”

I didn’t joke around this time, “When do I start?”

“Next week. Jezek will pick you up for work early, and we will begin planning the first stages." she said.

My journey back was punctuated by a rather excited Jezek leaping from wave to wave, he managed to find every wake and power into the air off them. I was battered, bruised but beaming when we got back to La Lolita. I was torn between wanting to tell my Dad as soon as I could and not wanting to leave Jezek.

Chapter 5

Jezek didn’t appear that weekend, I went to bed on Saturday night oddly unsettled—I was used to him turning up every Saturday now and his absence caused a strange emptiness, a new experience for me.

Sunday night I heard the high whine of tri-jets powering their way over to us, oddly more than one set. I jumped up to the porthole only to see Loria and Samat agitating outside. “Katie, come, come, Jezek is gone!!”

It was difficult to get on board as the girls couldn’t seem to decide who was to pick me up. In the end, I yelled, “Loria, come here and stop! I’m going to end up in the water otherwise.”

Stop she did, Samatsia was still buzzing around us as I jumped onboard.

***
Jezek

I was playing, chasing ferries to jump from their wash when something hit me. Hit me hard, everything was black.

Now I just have blackness, only that. No body, can’t feel, can’t see, can’t hear. Mommy, Daddy, Lora, Samatsia where are you? Katie, can anyone hear me?

The blackness went on and on. There was some sound, clanking, thumping, thrumming but then just silence.

***

“This mech should be worth millions, can you get him into the front compartment without the Captain catching on?” Archer turned to Wilheim.

“No problem, he’s not back for a few more hours. You sure that EMP hasn’t fried the goods? That boat looks deader n dead.”

“I’m sure. He won’t wake up for days as long as you fitted the suppressor collar properly.” He said.

“Ugh I did, I just don’t like being on board that thing. Why does the law give them rights, them just machines surely.” Wilheim said

“Reckon most governments were forced into it by the cars and factory mechs. Don’t matter, they’re just machines where we’re going.” He said.

The crane lifted the seven meter long exotic sports cruiser inside it’s wrapping of steel webbing and stowed it in the front compartment of the four hundred meter cargo ship. The special thick clamps designed to keep a heavy sports boat safe looked like huge steel restraints. However, neither man had seen the slight hull differences that would betray the location of robotic limbs or the fact that the clamps didn’t cover these places.

***
Kazia was racing back and forth in the inlet when the girls and I arrived; she’d always been the soul of decorum, in fact I don’t remember seeing her race like this ever.

“He’s gone, Katie, where’s he gone?” Her foghorn voice echoed round the bay, scared. “He wouldn’t run away, he was happy. Why is he gone?”

“Kazia, what happened?” I yelled.

She stopped, pulled alongside Loria, I climbed out to get on board, she wouldn’t have to yell.

“What happened?” I said

“He was out, playing, he was outside our bay like he always does. Then he was gone. I can’t reach his radio, can’t see him from AIS, can’t see him anywhere. He’s gone." she went silent. Tim sat quiet too.

“How long has he been gone?”

“Since yesterday morning.” Tim said quietly. “He often goes out for the day but if he doesn’t come home, Kazia talks to him to make sure he’s ok.”

“There must be a reason.” I began

“There is…cannibalisers, scrappers. My children are worth more to them as parts than as people. I’m going to rip them people into shreds when I catch them if they’ve hurt Jezek." she growled.

Tim laid his hand on her, “Kazia, we don’t know yet. We will find him.”

She didn’t reply.

“I have an idea, maybe, Kazia, you said you use some kind of fusion engines right?” I said, “Does that leave any kind of a trail?”

“We do, though I think the sea would have washed it away now." she said.

“Maybe, but, some things aren’t washed away.” I said, thinking hard. “Lobster pots! There are thousands of them. We only need to find a few in a row, they might give us a start right?”

“I don’t know.” Tim said, “Kazia, can you detect Jezek’s exhaust that way?”

“Normally no, but if he was hurt then he may not have been able to use his engines properly. If that happens, then yes, they might be a residue to be found. But that’s tricky." she said.

“It’s a start. What do you know about scrappers?” I said

“They’re scum." she bit back.

“Ok, other than that.”

“I’ve only met one, he was always after cars. I was new to him and I hauled his ass to jail. He was lucky." she said.

“So we don’t know much. What do they need? Where can they sell Jezek?” Kazia threw something in a fit of temper, I heard whatever it was hit the shore. “Sell him? I’ll sell their body parts after I…”

“Kazia, stop, we gotta figure this out.” Tim spoke up this time.

“Can’t stop, want to kick asses, want my Jezek back and that is all." she said.

“I know, and I promise you can yell and do whatever you want once we get him back.”

I sat thinking that I didn’t know what the law would say about her ripping people apart, I didn’t want to find out, I just wanted my friend back. And, maybe I wanted to do a little rending apart of my own too.

“Where did his last signal come from?” I asked.

“Damn I didn’t think of that.” Tim said. “Kazia, can you access the AIS for the last day or so?”

After some hunting around, we were able to pick up Jezek’s last position. We raced out to it and found nothing, however a few hundred yards away we picked up an orange float—a lobster pot that showed up on Kazia’s detectors. “Well he was here.”

“Wait, Kazia, what vessels were around at that time?” Tim asked

There were several, however one was unnamed. Big enough to tow we tracked it to Southampton Port where the biggest cargo ships pulled in. There were a few ships in at that time, but one was favourite.

“Merrukashi Mearsk, look, she’s going to Africa.” Tim said

“So? There are a few cargo ships going at the same time.” Kazia said.

“Yes, but Africa is the only one that has not agreed the statutes of mech sentience and slaver laws.” He said.

Why didn’t I think of that?

“How fast is she going?” I said

“It doesn’t matter, she can go as fast as she wants, I’ll always catch her.” Kazia promised “Girls, we found the assholes that have Jezek.”

She was pretty certain. So was I.

“I’m going to take you home and then I’m going to chase me down some scum of the earth." she said.

“No you’re not. I’m coming with. He’s my friend and I want to see he is ok.”

“It’s not safe.” Tim said.

“Jezek isn’t safe now and I want to help. What if you all get caught too? I might be able to escape and get help. No, I’m coming.” I said more firmly this time.

“Kazia, let’s go. She’s probably right, none of us are soldiers anyway.” He said, giving in.

“Fine, you need a seat belt, both of you." she said.

Turning sharply, she called out to the girls “Right, we gotta shift, if you lose me you have to go to the police, do you hear me Loria, Samatsia?”

“You won’t lose us Mom, we can go fast, fast, fast.” Samatsia cried out.

Tim and I buckled into the large leather captain’s seats at her inner helm. “How fast will she go?” I asked

“I don’t know, I have never seen anything beat her in a straight line yet.” He said. “I’d be excited if I wasn’t scared for Jezek.”

I felt the same.

Kazia’s nose lifted sharply, her engines screamed and we took off, literally, as our acceleration shot us into the air; we smacked down and hit nearly a hundred knots in the time it took me to gasp and recover.

The ride got rougher, the leaps between waves longer as Kazia poured on the speed, her tri-jet’s pitch rising and rising as her velocity increased, bouncing from wave to wave, the beat of the water on her hull getting faster and faster, thump, thump, thump; I looked at her dials, we hit three hundred knots, the figures didn’t stall, they climbed higher still. Out of the window, to port Loria, to starboard Samatsia, easily keeping time and pace with their Mom, their lighter bodies needed less power to reach these insane speeds.

Cowes and the Needles, the apt named lonely outcroppings demarking the far west of Cowes, vanished behind us, before us the grey and foamy sea under a slate grey sky, a void we were rapidly dissecting with our wake. Kazia pinging her radar, lidar and sonar like crazy along with other sensors I didn’t have names for, giving her detailed images of hazards that she weaved and dodged around, her children following in perfect time, matching turn for turn, dodge for dodge, jump for jump.

As our speed hit four hundred knots I could see Guernsey in the distance, and the shadow of a cargo ship. Glancing down at the AIS, yes it was the one we hunted.

Within moments we were at her stern and circling, a pack of tiny high speed wolves worrying at the huge ship. The Merrukashi Mearsk was making thirty knots, a handsome ship that I really hoped had nothing to do with Jezek’s taking.

Kazia yelled out loud and over radio at the cargo ship to heave to. At first she got an abrupt response, however the tone changed when the words slave and kidnapped were broadcast as our position was now close enough to Guernsey for the Port Police to also be in radio range, and Maersk—an old established shipping company—did not want their name connected to even alleged capital crimes.

It took the graceful grand lady of a cargo vessel several miles to come to a relative halt and loose her anchors.

Chapter 6

Jezek:

I could hear Mom, my sisters-crackling over the radio, the steel hull of the ship I was in blocked some of the signal. But I could hear them!

My power levels rose as my body repaired the connections the bad men did with the thing that hit me. As I recovered, I could feel the steel net around me, the big clamps and, oh wait.

My arms, haha, the bad men, they didn’t know my arms. The clamps didn’t hold my arms.

It was hard to wait for my power to get strong enough to move my arms but soon it would be enough. Soon.

***

The captain didn’t know why Kazia thought Merrukashi Mearsk carried Jezek. He showed us every document, his logs, everything: there were no unexplained details or stops.

The radio crackled to life “Mom, mom, you there? I can hear you!” A boy’s voice, Jezek’s, crackled over the speaker.

I grabbed it. “It’s me, it’s Katie and your Dad is here. We are all here. Where are you?”

“It’s dark here, I’m in some clamps but my arms are free! I don’t know where I am.” He said, “Oh bad men…hang on”

There was yelling, bangs, gunshots. The captain’s face paled, “What the hell is happening?”

“Somewhere on board, you have a cargo hold not filled with whatever is on your paper. And that’s my boy.” Tim said, looking at him directly. “Want to help us find him?”

“Of course, I’ll get help.” He said, rushing to the ship wide tannoy. He called for the crew to search the holds.

***
Jezek:

Light came on, several men came rushing in, all aiming guns at me.

“Be quiet, shut up or we’ll shoot you.” The main guy had a large rifle aimed right at my nose—he was standing a little bit too close.

Slipping my bow arms free quickly, quietly I reached out as he shot me, I grabbed him, the bullet bounced off and hit the wall of the tanker.

Not knowing what else to do with him, I threw him at the others, they went down in a tangle, gunshots flying everywhere, most of them missed me.

I examined the clamps, they were simple enough, I just had to bend this bit just so, then that bit. Oops, a large piece flew off and hit the wall harder than the bullet.

Wait, how was I going to get out though? The hold was closed, it was a lot taller than me, I was still trapped.

So were the men, lying asleep on the floor.

The roof opened, Katie, I could see Katie looking down at me.

“JEZEK!!" she yelled down.

A man appeared and pulled her back.

“Be careful, miss, it’s a long fall down there. We’ll get him out presently.” He said “Look here, he’s still in that steel strapping, that’s good, we can lift him right out.”

He radioed the bridge, “Can we get number one crane running, he’s here. These people are right, those assholes took their friend and stuffed him here.”

There were several men lying unconscious in a heap a few metres from his nose; they didn’t secure him so well after all.

I’ll never forget the undignified yet alluring sight of the rather annoyed little cruiser as he was lifted, still entangled in the steel net up and over the side of the Merrukashi Maersk.

It took a while, long enough for me to see more detail: his hull was clean, though I thought I could see a small black streak near his nose, but it faded as I watched. His triple engine pods were flexing left and right, agitating, impatient for the water. Just forward of the central engine though, once again, I noted the strange long shiny pod. Must ask him what it is.

The crane halted in its journey, the operator leaned out and yelled over to us. “One of you called Katie?”

“That’s me.” I yelled back

“This fellow in the net here, he’s asking to see you now, before I put him overboard. How is he getting on my radio?” The crew were surprisingly adaptable to the mech presence on their vessel.

“Oh, hang on then.” I rushed over to the steel net wrapped round Jezek.

“Hello stranger, you couldn’t wait to escape us?” I said, “You had to get a free trip to Africa?”

“Ugh, I knocked them all out, jerks, and no, no, no never wanted to get away…and not from you.” He said, “Quick, get on board, before they let me go. I want to talk to you.”

I scrambled on, as the operator called out “That’s not safe miss!”

Jezek yelled back,”Yes it is, she’s my girlfriend!”

None of that made sense but this time, I didn’t want to argue with him. I was a friend who was a girl, maybe it was ok. It shut the crane guy up and he lifted the both of us up and over into the water.

“Are you hurt?” I asked him as we splashed down.

He sat, unpicking the steel net and hooked it on the crane. “No, they knocked me out—don’t know how, but I’m ok now.”

“You Mom and sisters went faster than any boats I ever saw, fast as a plane, it was awesome.” I said, “We were all dead scared though, we didn’t know if we could find you. What were they going to do?”

“Mom thinks they were slavers who would either sell me or take me to pieces and sell me. Ugh, wanted to take them to pieces.” He spat.

“You said I was your girlfriend again, Jezek. You said it to that crane guy.” I said, not quite sure what to think. “Do you really like me that much?”

“Yes, and I missed you when I woke up.” He said, quietly. “It’s ok if you just want to be friends, I just want you to know that’s all.”

“Ok” I stroked him. “Look, let’s go home and have fun. I will start work with your family tomorrow.” I didn’t want to upset him again by rejecting the girlfriend status he kept thrusting on me. And I wasn’t too sure if I wanted to.

The journey back was a little easier, we barely broke two hundred mile an hour this time.

All three children and their Mom were hyperactively filling the radio waves with their excited chatter.

The Merrukashi’s captain had locked up the kidnappers, the police had been called and Kazia had left them instructions on how to reach us for evidence if needed.

The girls kept teasing Jezek about calling me his girlfriend again and I found myself blushing as he became more and more robust in his defence.

Samatsia pulled over alongside us, yelled over to me, above the noise of the jets and the wash. “So, are you going to be his girlfriend Katie?”

“Maybe, maybe that’s our business?” I said.

“Ooooh, it’s Our Business now?" she said laughing as she shared her juicy titbit to her sister. High pitched giggling over the radio punctuated the roaring of the engines and sea as we bounced and jetted our way back home.

I thought it over, Our Business didn’t sound so bad after all.

Chapter 7

Jezek wanted me to stay with him overnight but I stopped to see Dad first—we disappeared so quickly it would have been mean to not see him and tell him why I’d taken off like I did.

Sleeping overnight on Jezek was possible now, though I had to pack some gear of my own; he hadn’t yet acquired all the things a girl needs for a good night’s sleep. On reflection I figured it would have been more comfortable on Kazia, she’d looked after Tim all this time, but Jezek didn’t want me anywhere else that night.

Truth was neither did I.

Curled up in his bow cabin, he’d redesigned his interior space to give me enough room, I was cosy—he was warm, his hull interior was warm and I could feel him watching me as I drifted to sleep.

I woke early, the sea was calm, everything was silent and I just lay thinking. Everything had happened so fast, his kidnapping, our impossible chase and now here I was spending my first night with him.

The girlfriend thing bugged me: Jezek really was obsessed with the idea.

How would that even work? I didn’t want to ask Tim, yet he was the natural person to ask. At the thought I felt a blush, I hoped Jezek wasn’t looking in here at me. Really, I didn’t know how he or his sisters worked. How come they grow? How come they were born at all?

And what made him want a girlfriend?

And would it be a bad thing? Looking at his Mom, he was going to be a big boat, and well, being selfish about it—somewhere to live would never be a question. I laughed, what a way to think about it. My boyfriend is where I live? On the other hand, there were poets who’d kill for material like that: My love is where I live, where I live is whom I love.

“Are you awake?” He spoke up.

“Yes, I’m just thinking.” I replied.

“Oh, I was thinking too.” He said. “What about?”

“No, you first.” I said.

“No, no you said about thinking first!” He said.

I gave in. “Ok, look I’m not saying yes or no, I just want to know something. Why does a boat want a girlfriend?” I said.

“Mom has Dad, so why not?”

“Jezek, that doesn’t tell me why YOU want one.” I said

“I dunno, it’s just a feeling. I can feel it inside me, I want someone like Mom has Dad. I see them cuddle and, well, I want that too Katie. And you looks all cuddly to me.” He said quietly. “And I like you like I think liking a girlfriend is like.”

“Cuddly? That’s the oddest compliment I ever heard a boy say to a girl he wants to date!” I said, “And that is the most confusing way I’ve ever heard of a guy saying he likes a girl, ever.”

“Oh, sorry, is that wrong?” He said,

“No, no it’s fine.” I didn’t think I was cuddly, I worked around boats and did physical things, I didn’t carry any padding as a result, but maybe to a boat I was cuddly. I decided to take it how he meant it. “No, it’s sweet really.”

I could tell he meant it. What was I going to do about it?

“How would we even date Jezek? Not like we can go to a restaurant together.” I said.

“Don’t need that, just, Katie, are you taking the mickey now?” He said huffing.

“No…of course not.” I said laughing. “Ok, maybe a little.”

He snorted, aping the sound perfectly. “Just you wait, I’m gonna dunk you in the sea for that.”

“And you’d have a wet girlfriend then.”

“I live in the sea…that’s a problem, how?” He said, then catching it “Wait you said girlfriend…does that mean?”

“Look ok, Jezek, you’ll have to give me some time ok? I don’t know how it works with mechs and people but yeah ok. We can try it.” I said, not sure what made me yield to his desire that I acknowledge that I be his girlfriend. I stroked his hull wall, “There are some details we’ll have to work out over time though Jezek. Personal things y’know.”

There really was. Most girls count on finding the right guy or sometimes girl and well, Jezek will have to learn how I guess.

“That’s ok, we can ask Mom and Dad.” He said brightly.

“Jezek, don’t you dare!!” I said hotly. “That’s private to them and us!”

“Oh, but Dad must have…you know…”He said trailing off

“Maybe they did but we’ll work that out ourselves. Hang on a minute, Jezek um, you’re a mech, so how come you think of stuff like this?” I was running out of ways to say sex without saying it.

“And that’s personal too, hahah.” He said with pride.

“Oh wait, so you know about all this?” I asked going redder and redder.

“Silly Katie, I have the internet y’know. And Mom told me enough—look, when she met Dad, she did all kinds of things to herself to make my sisters and I possible. Ask her sometime, if it’s not too um…private.” He said.

“Right, I think I need to shower and get food and start work.” Actually anything to get out of this conversation that was starting to really bug me. Maybe I should speak to Kazia.

Breakfast was sea bass, caught by Jezek and his sisters, barbecued by Tim. I never got a chance to ask Kazia that day as it was filled with the details of my new job and her project.

Needless to say, Loria and especially Samatsia took great delight in teasing both Jezek and I, but we held our own and beat them sometimes too.

The first project was the organising of the boat house buildings. My work here was to learn how to be the family secretary and help Tim muddle through designs, contractors, equipment hire and more.

Within weeks part of the beach was filled with noise and a myriad of contractors laying foundations, extending pilings, building great frameworks, running power, pipes and the other essentials each building would need.

First up were boat houses big enough to easily house Kazia and lift her with her very own dry docking crane. I didn’t fully know why each house would have one but that mystery wouldn’t take so long to answer.

Each of her children had their own house, she insisted on it overriding Tim’s original idea of a communal space. He was thinking in terms of a human family, she was thinking in terms of rapidly growing children who would be adult sized in a couple of years. Little did I appreciate the implications for me.

During the months of the project Jezek and his sisters grew quickly, I could see their hulls lengthening and widening; they were getting taller too. Jezek relaid his interior several times during this time and I helped choose materials—he could make most things, except for the separate bedding items but my pay covered what I wanted. I loved furry, snuggly blankets and his front cabin was now a great nest of these in a variety of colours: purples, dark reds and blues.

Chapter 8

Tim and I sat on board Kazia, Jezek and his sisters were out in the bay playing, often disappearing outside into the open sea. They’d all grown so much that their engine notes were bassier, very little of the treble of youth remained. Kazia had asked to see me without Jezek, a business meeting she called it.

“I understand you have questions about myself and Tim, about Jezek and why machines want partners in the manner we do?" she said, I focussed on Tim as I sat in her stern, I preferred to have a face to focus on.

“Yes, Jezek has made it abundantly clear that he wants more than friendship and, well, I like him, I like him a lot yet I do not understand how more than friendship can work. Or why it should.” I said, I was a little embarrassed but if I didn’t tackle this now, when would I? And truth was, spending time away from him was getting harder now, as if I was falling for him regardless of his shape.

“Forgive me then, the explanation is a bit involved but I’ll try to keep it short." she said, “All biological life seeks connection, with the world around it, with others like it and in any higher species, with one it can mate with. Chemical signals drive it—little levers dictating and directing behaviours leading to connection, often reproduction.”

“I get it, that’s true for life, but how can it be true for created things like machines and…boats?” I said.

“Even your earliest machines imitated life—clumsily and poorly—yet they shared characteristics of life. Humanity can’t create anything complex without infusing it with their own deepest needs, usually by accident but sometimes by design." she went on, “The first AI programs were created to connect to information and learn from it. A need to connect, in a myriad of ways, was hardwired in yet these primitive mathematical algorithms had no sentience; even now humanity does not truly know what sentience is. Your legal definitions only cover observable behaviour: I’m alive because I can say so.”

“But we have hormones, evolution gave us needs to drive us on. Our machines never had that.” I said, I liked biology at school.

“If you examine them, they are just goals, just different sets of electrical signals fired in different sequences. And even the simplest AI programs have goals too. Do they feel as a human would? I couldn’t tell you, though for the simple ones, I doubt it. However, neither can we state that one singular neuron can feel in the same manner." she said, “Feeling good is what achieving or striving to achieve those goals, most often goals of connection, produces. And every sentient mech personality has inherited this: a need to achieve a myriad of goals to varying degrees, most of them are all about connection, communication and therefore life.”

She paused, “And created or evolved, our feelings, our emotions are as real and important to us as are those of humanity.”

“Oh.” I think I understood, maybe.

“And the strongest connections, those you call love, those are the strongest whether created by biological synaptic routines or quantum optic synaptic routines. Think about this Katie, your neurons connect to each other with either twenty to forty nanometre chemical synapses or five nanometre pure electrical gap junctions. My own processors use features under a nanometer wide and at some nodes, smaller yet." she stopped.

Tim spoke up “This is getting technical Kazia.” then turning to me, “What it boils down to, is her mind, and those of her children, are as at least as complex as your own and need connection, love, just as much as our own. Do you love Jezek?”

His sudden question took me off-guard—I blushed, “Well…I never had love but I don’t like being away from him, I think about him when we are not together and…” I stopped, not sure if I wanted to share anything more, then plunged on “Oh but Tim, Kazia, look there is one thing I just can’t see—well, how did…did you.”

Tim laughed, cutting into my embarrassed hesitancy “How did we have our children? Is that what you wish to know?”

Kazia boomed, “Bwahahaha…I’m sorry, that is funny.”

I went bright red, “…I didn’t mean to intrude.”

“No, no not at all, just funny that really what you wanted to ask was: how can you and Jezek have sex." she said her bold statement shocked me out of embarrassment this time.

“Well, since you put it like that, he wants a girlfriend and guys who want a girlfriend, want to do that too.” I said in a rush.

“Well, I’m not going to embarrass my son explaining just how he’s going to solve that problem but rest assured, mechs are very adaptable." she wouldn’t say anything more, though I did try to press her. “He’ll solve it, you’ll solve it, you’ll solve it together and how you do so, that’s between you two.”

Chapter 9

It was a warm quiet evening, the contractors had gone for the day, the boathouses were complete and we were quietly watching the sun go down.

I lay belly down on his now much larger foredeck idly stroking his vents. Like an exotic alien sports car, he and his sisters had hundreds of these laid out symmetrically on their upper decks. They would shift and move when he spoke or drove and also when touched as I was doing now.

“Jezek, can you feel this when I touch you here?” I said.

A warm smooth hand silently held my butt. “Can you feel this when I touch you here?” He said quietly.

“Oh ok, point made.” I said. I’d gotten more used to his touch over the months we’d been together. I’d stroke his hull and body idly, it was normal now for me. One hand or the other would regularly grab me, stroke me and hold me. Yet, so far, neither one of us pushed the S word. I didn’t know how it could work and I didn’t want to hurt him by being unable to do what he wanted.

“Katie, shall we sleep in the boat house tonight?” The houses were declared ready only that morning.

“If you want to, though not sure on a warm night like this it makes a difference.” I was being dense.

“Well, I’d like to.” He powered slowly into the house on the far right that he’d claimed as his.

The huge crane arched over him as he slipped into place. He reached over and operated the controls, I felt the straps slide onto his hull then lift us up.

“Why are you doing that?” I said.

“Gimme a minute, want to show you something.” His voice was soft now.

The house doors closed, lights came on, all low level and only a little brighter than the dim evening sun.

“Climb out, climb down and take a look, I’ve a surprise for you.” He said.

Mysterious.

I did as he asked, only to find that underneath him was drained of water and a platform had been extended under his hull. A padded platform. Easily big enough for several people. A platform on an extended arm.

Oh.

“Jezek, should I ask?”

“You can, but would you consider…” He trailed off again, embarrassed?

I decided to just go along with him, he’d never hurt me so far and he clearly wanted to show me something.

I lay on the padded platform, the padding was deep and soft. It moved me closer to his hull until I could reach out and touch it.

Moving towards his stern, there it was, the silvery shiny bulge, the mystery package.

“Jezek, what is this?”

He didn’t answer as the platform bore me directly to it. The bulge was half the length of my body, the width of my leg and extremely suggestive in shiny steel fashion. I touched it, I felt him quiver, I stroked it, I felt him shiver, the steel split open flowering into a probing proboscis, a phallus, a stylized and beautiful sleek steel phallus.

And I stopped trying to ask questions, the answer was here, I just needed experience not words now.

I didn’t stop with the touching and stroking, he didn’t stop with the quivering and shivering. I kissed it, licked it, tasted him and felt stirrings of fire in my groin at the exquisite metallic musk; how can a mech boat have a girl friend indeed…right now…any way he damned well pleased.

The more I tasted, the more I needed to taste, the more I licked him, the more I hungered for him, I tried to take him into my mouth but could not, I licked and nibbled the sleek lines instead; it was so much more beautiful than anything nature produced for the same purpose.

It flexed a little, vibrated a little as I worked it, as I worked him. He expanded, fully flowering now, hanging heavy, thick, ribbed and hard.

And I needed him.

Shuffling backwards, I gently touched his head to my sopping pussy, he pushed at me; I looked up and behind me, I could see his arms pulling his whole body. This whole boat was going to fuck me.

Twenty tons of Jezek was going to slowly enter me and I needed it.

My back arching as I tried to control the thrust, the stretching was painful, tricky to handle, I gasped as the sleek head slipped and shafted me slowly inside, his shimmering steel impaling me, sharp pain as my hymen gave way firing scintillating pain up my spine, followed closely by the deeper hotter pain of my first real orgasm.

Pulling back, the pleasure pain of his thrust reversing sent ever harder rips of agonising orgasm through me. I was on the edge of torture, torture by his beautiful great mech phallus, a torture I couldn’t bear to end.

He eased his great piston back into me, reaming and boring me out, slow great thrusts—a great ship with his great piston cycling his slow way deep into and out of me, each cycle raising my temperature, bringing me closer and closer to the boil, in and out, again and again, thrust, squeeze, thrust and squeeze.

His metallic musk grew stronger, the scent of hot oils grew heavier, drugging me deeper and deeper into pure lust as he filled and fulfilled me. I writhed and squirmed in my impaled place, sometimes licking and kissing his smooth hull, his sensual smooth fractal patterned hull; as I licked, as I kissed, he thrust that bit harder, that bit deeper, vibrations from his engines rumbling through his phallus into my core, resonating in my bones, my blood and my brain, driving me deeper and deeper, my soul beginning to connect with his more and more, I could feel his mech spirit flowing around my own, holding me, cradling me, cuddling me even as he owned me, took me, made me his.

Never missing a beat, he thoroughly rammed, thoroughly reamed, thoroughly ragged me through orgasm after orgasm, never pausing in his pistoning, never too fast, never too slow, he never stopped easing his steel ram in and out of me; I writhed, moaned and screamed his name over and over until I was hoarse…

And then, he held back, something changed, his vibrations grew deeper and more insistent: I could feel a groaning in his engines as he pushed himself even slower now into me and then held himself in place. I gasped as my insides stretched and stretched, he was expanding inside me!

My orgasms couldn’t stop as over and over, powerful heavy contractions wracked my body as his great member bulged and bulged, knotting hot and hard in my core, in my womb he was embedded throbbing, pulsating as I felt my body expanding to take him.

Then it happened—he yelled and he roared, his engines screamed, his body thrashing and shaking: great heaving jets of liquid heated up my insides, setting me on fire all over again, over and over, my own contractions crescendoed in time with every hard pulsation of fluid pounding its way deeper into me and my body trying to suck it all out of him, suck all of his essence, his ship seed deep into me and hold it for all time.

The last great orgasm exploded over me in a blinding golden aura of furious flaming never ending pleasure. Every nerve, every fibre, every last molecule of who I was disappeared in a flash of deep burning fury.

I was complete. He was complete. The air was thick with our completeness.

He didn’t let me go.

I was still impaled securely when I woke, face and body pressed tight to his smooth, warm hull in the morning. Reluctant to move, despite being quite sore, the pain was pleasure and having him pull out unthinkable. It was silent. Was he awake?

Shifting my legs, I wriggled around and felt his head stretching me still, sharp arcs of pleasure shot through me at my movements. If I carried on I wouldn’t be getting out from under here so soon.

I carried on.

He didn’t make a sound. He didn’t move. He was warm, the slightest vibrations betrayed his life but he didn’t move at all.

I did.

I managed, awkwardly, to flip over by pulling away a little until his head was nearly out of my entrance, it’s size making me gasp. Then, flexing my left leg high to my chest I was able to pull it round where his phallus was attached to him. The member was much longer than what I could hope to take, the extra two foot gave me clearance to get my leg over.

On my side, the pain was sweet hard torture but I wasn’t done with him yet.

Final struggle, I got to my hands and knees. Time to wake him up.

Rocking back and forth, I took control this time and either sleeping or playing along, he never stirred.

Slowly, sweet pain rippling through my insides once more as sore muscles from last night protested yet every other nerve in my body delighted in the delicious sensation of his smooth ribbed steel entering me under my command this time.

My thighs were burning as were my arms by the time my first orgasm hit, a slow languorous thrumming contraction that never seemed to end. It wasn’t the fire and fury of last night’s passion, rather a longer slower sensation that nevertheless left me breathing deep and heavy. Fluids poured out of me as I thrust myself backwards onto his phallus, heavy metallic musk assailed my nose as the mix of my own scents and his hot seed billowed around me, an invisible cloud of fragrant passion.

I felt him expand, I felt him try to thrust, I felt him pulsate—all warnings as I pulled away a little, trying to prolong it, extend it, give myself more time—but too late: he jetted into me once more, the head of his phallus expanded too far now and would not unplug. I could not pull him out of me, I was truly knotted, rutted and plugged: ship seeded once more.

Gasping, I fell flat to the padding and passed out as my orgasms and his jetting went on and on.

The next time I woke, morning had passed and Jezek had pulled out his great knotted member and hidden it away in its silver sheath.

“Good morning.” He said, brightly.

Between my legs I was aching, between my legs my muscles complained, between my legs I felt stretched, heavy and totally fulfilled.

“Good morning Jezek.” I said.

Chapter 10

I joined Tim for breakfast onboard Kazia. Climbing from Jezek to Kazia was a trial; I tried hard to hide winces as my sore muscles protested yet more use.

“Looks like you and Jezek sorted out answers to certain questions I take it?” Kazia said.

“Stop it love.” Tim scolded her as my face flamed red, “Can’t you see she’s embarrassed?”

“Tosh, she ought to get used to it. Jezek is quite smitten with her." she replied.

“Erm, I’m standing right here. “ I said.

“Yes, yes I know, it’s my deck you’re standing on." she said, still laughing. “I’m sorry, I’m just happy for my boy and that it’s worked out for you two. I didn’t know what to expect, even though I did my best to design him right.”

“Wait, what?” I did know really, but I’d put the thought out of my mind. “You made him like that, and his …. Y’know…”

“Phallus? Just use phallus if penis bothers you so." she said, “Of course, though Tim helped a little too.”

“Can we PLEASE discuss something else now?” I said, I really couldn’t take much more.

“Wassup Katie.” Jezek piped up.

“Nothing, nothing at all, just parents being, well parents.” I said.

“Oh I heard Mom say ‘penis’ and thought you guys were talking about sex again…hey Katie, can we do that again? Please?” He jetted round in circles, his wash enough to rock Kazia and send me stumbling.

“Jezek!!” I was lost for words, embarrassment warred with my need to giggle helplessly at him.

“What’s up?” He yelled back,” It was great and you’re so sexy and I want to do it again!”

Double facepalm moment as I just sat heavily onto one of the large cushioned deck chairs Tim had thoughtfully laid out.

“Yep, I’m afraid he’s as shy as his Mother.” He said a wry smile crinkled his lips. “That is to say, not at all. You’ll get used to it in time. Just wait till Samatsia and Loria catch up to you both; they’ll want every detail.”

“Oh my god, Why?” I said, through my hands held tight to my face.

“Well, they want boyfriends too.” Kazia said, “Samatsia has already made it very clear to me, though Loria is more reserved about it.”

I heard their tri-jets heading back towards us, their engine notes, just like Jezek’s, nearly as deep as Kazia’s own.

“Well, I can’t stop him gossiping but I’d rather he didn’t. That’s a very private thing.” I said.

“Yes, Tim says the same thing; I don’t really understand it myself." she said, little sympathy but much amusement coloured her tone.

“It’s a human thing, I don’t know why but it feels like something Jezek and I should share alone.” I said.

“Good luck with that.." she replied as foghorn squeals of laughter and giggles reached us over the open water.

“You know what? I think I just want to eat and get to work. Have you got the plans for the next project Tim?” With that, I shut out the brazen voices of Jezek and his sisters as our love life was being discussed across the open sea.

End of Book 2
Book 3 is unfinished but covers Kazia’s other children. Scroll down for the beginning chapters.

Kazia’s Children 2 - Loria and Samatsia

Chapter 1

Loria

She was an elegant ladyboat, lissome, lithe and lovely to behold. And she was staring right at me.

“You had a good look then?” she turned, spraying me with a rooster tail of sea water, and jetted off across the bay, skimming the waves, a shining high speed stone skipping over the ocean.

I turned, wiping at the salty spray dotting my coat and dreamed as I walked back to my work. I’ll see her again, I’m sure.

Picking up the lance I continued with my task - jetting an older lady of a yacht clean of fouling. I bet She didn’t get fouled; I’d never seen her in the arms of this cradle.

Yes, I’d seen her before, hell, I looked out for her and her sister. She was the one that came out the most. Who didn’t know them? The strange mech family that hit the headlines only months ago? The dramatic rescue of the male, Jezek and the rumoured, unlikely sounding romance between him and a girl from another marina.

I’d worked here for six months when the story of Jezek and the slavers broke in the newspapers and online. There was a great picture of him being lifted out with Katie, apparently now his girlfriend—how that works, I can’t imagine. I followed their story as much as I could but there was little detail available after the rescue. For such unique people, they were very private.

Still I watched out for them, especially Loria, her blues and greens reminded me of dragons with their iridescent scales, a visual made more real with the fractals that shifted and danced over her hull.
***

What does he think he was doing? Loria thought to herself, honestly, his eyes were round like saucers, anyone would think he’d never seen a speedboat before. He’s just a skinny washer boy, caring for those dull, dead machines, ones with no spark. I suppose it would be nice for him to wash me instead.

She wasn’t exactly a speedboat, more a miniature high speed cruiser but she was still growing. Her Mom said she’d probably grow over seventy foot herself, easily as big as her parent. Right now however, she was barely twenty eight foot long, seven wide, her tri-jets still had the high pitched treble of a young mech boat and her cabin barely large enough for an average human to stand up straight. Not that she wanted an average human, no sir, she wanted a handsome captain to play with, just like her Mom did, though maybe not one like her Dad.

She loved her Dad, she just didn’t think it was proper to want a captain like him somehow.

Her sister thought she was silly wanting a captain, she thought it was fine to play just as the mechs they were, helping Mom, chasing her brother with his girlfriend… Haha… And her sister.

But Loria felt different, she saw how Jezek and Katie fell in love and, well, why not? Why couldn’t she have that too? Mom did.

She just didn’t want a gawker like that awkward boy on the bankside. Really. Skinny, too small, too young. No, no good at all. She wanted a handsome muscled prince of a captain, a warrior-like figure she could feel embrace her hull properly and give her the love she wanted. Mmmmm

Her many deck vents shivered in a sinuous Mexican wave at the thought, as she jumped and skimmed over the sea away from the less than desirable gawker, a gawker who might be good enough to wash her decks.

***

It was a week later, another dozen jet washed hulls later, that I got a bit of a shock whilst I was hosing down the stern of Lucinda, a thirty five foot Princess who’d been badly in need of her yearly wash. She wasn’t alive like Loria and her family, but I found her a handsome craft just the same. It’s why I apprenticed here, I do like boats.

I stood a few feet from the edge of the dock operating the jet wash when round my ankle there was a tug, not hard enough to trip me, but enough to make me jump. I looked down at a slender, silver hand attached to an elegant arm that pulled back now that it had done its job. The owner of the sci-fi appendage floated in her green and blue fractal glory, rows of vents across her nose flickering in waves.

I always see eyes in the windows of the boats I look at, a silly superstition but in her case, perhaps less so. It gave me somewhere to focus and who knows, perhaps that was as good as anywhere else.

“So, do you clean mechs in here too or just them dumb machines you got dangling there?" she demanded, somewhat imperiously.

“Well, they ain’t dumb, they just don’t have your technology. That’s a bit mean.” I said, a little indignant on Lucinda’s behalf. After all, they might not talk but surely they had souls.

“Uh huh, well, what else do you call summat that don’t talk?”

“I know what I call someone who’s being mean: rude.” I said, I couldn’t help myself, something in her manner made my hackles rise. She sounded spoilt, a brat even though she was breathtaking to look upon.

“Fine, I’ll take my needs somewhere else then." she huffed and started to back up.

“Look ok, I’m sorry, of course we can work on you.” I didn’t want her to leave just yet, she was really pretty and a pleasure to look at.

She continued to back away.

“Unless of course, you can’t handle a debate that is?” My last sally, maybe spoilt has pride too?

She motored back. “Huh, any day mate. But I’d rather get a wash sooner. A real wash too. Not just that tickler you got there. Cloths and buffing and all of it.”

She didn’t look like she needed it. Not a bit of it. Gleaming shades of green and blue, not the slightest bit of salt residue crusting anywhere on her skin.

“It would be my pleasure.” I said, “Just let me unload Lucinda.” I thought I heard her say something like, not half as much as mine, but I couldn’t be sure over the whine of her jets.

I duly unloaded Lucinda back onto her stand, fixed up the blocks and braces then drove the crane back to the dock. It dwarfed Loria, she was barely seven or eight foot wide at the most. Lowering the strap into the water, I called down to her, “Position yourself where it’s comfortable - have you been craned before?”

“Of course, we do have a crane you know.” the same imperious reply.

“Ok, fine. You know what to do then.” I waited whilst she fidgeted and fiddled, getting the straps into just the right position. Once she was settled I lifted her out and finally got a good look at her beautiful, streamlined hull. She was gorgeous.

I stood and stared, savoring every detail, the sleek pods where her jets protruded, the elegant flow of her lines from bow to stern. I was entranced, she was a queen among boats, no wonder she was so imperious.

“Well, are you going to get on with it then?” Did I hear something else in her imperial tone this time? Did she catch me gawking at her?

I was right, there was no fouling on her hull at all.

“Um, there’s nothing to clean off, Loria.” I said, as much as I appreciated her looks and wanted to clean her, she was already clean and I didn’t like ripping a customer off, not even one with the attitude of some kind of royalty.

“Silly boy, maybe I just like the feeling of being cleaned?" she said, laughing at me now.

“I’m eighteen now and I think I’m older than you are!” I jetted her with cold water, right over her jet bulges and whatever else she had there. I was rewarded with a squeal and then her arm came out from the port side and grabbed the jet out of my hands!

“Have some of that!" she cried as she sprayed me back. Grr! It was freezing and fortunately I’d turned down the pressure as I didn’t know how delicate her hull was. I scrambled backwards, found the kill switch and switched it off.

“You gonna give me that lance back or am I gonna leave you dangling and yowling here all night?” I wouldn’t but did she know that?

“Huh spoilsport. Oh alright, I’ll be good but you were mean first.”

“You wanted cleaning.”

“Yeah and you needed cleaning.”

“Such manners you have for a boat!” I said

“Such skinniness you have for a boy.”

This was going nowhere fast. “Shall we start again?”

“Only if you promise not to jet cold water on my private bits!" she snapped.

Oh wait, what?

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know…I’d no idea.” Flushing, I switched the lance back on. “Seriously, you aren’t kidding me?”

“Um duh, how do you think Mom and Dad did it?”

“Wait, nah, you are winding me up now you Highness." she had to be. Kazia just decided to create her children right?

“Hah, Highness with her own serving boy…I like it. Come here boy and serve me.” Her tone was at once imperious and laughing now.

I bowed, “Whatever my lady desires, highness.” I played along, she was much nicer when she was having fun.

I lanced her hull, followed by waxing and buffing, the process accompanied by a musical array of sighs, whispering shifting panels and flaps, and the odd command to rub here a little more, rub there a little more. I worked from bow to stern, port to starboard in a zig-zag pattern so that by the time I reached her jet pods, all her forward and mid hull had been worked on. As I crossed over her midline I noticed a curious elongated octagonal design set into the skin of her hull. As I waxed over this, the design flexed and folds of slim steel shifted and opened, revealing more layers of steel.

“Wait, leave that!" she squealed, reaching under with her stern arms. I pulled back hurriedly.

“Apologies, what is that?”

“Are you dense, boy?" she declined to answer further.

Oh, I thought, I think I know. I didn’t say anything more, just carried on polishing round her jet pods and admiring the artistry of Kazia’s design of her child.

“Ok, I’m done with your hull - are you happy?”

“Except for you being a bit dense, yes.”

“Well, excuse me your royal highness, I didn’t know you were sensitive there.”

She huffed, her deck plates slammed down and she said, “Well you ought to have guessed.”

“Excuse me for not being an expert on royal mech boats! “

“Huh, just get on with the rest then. “

I stepped back, bowed mockingly and said, “I’ll toddle off and get some steps then your Highness.”

Her starboard arms, fore and aft unfolded smoothly, the seams in her hull from where they came barely visible. She joined the hands together, “don’t be silly, I’m not that tall yet, here, step up.”

Dubiously I placed my weight on her silver hands, not expecting such a slender structure to hold me, but they barely moved. Instead, they lifted me until I could reach out and climb onto her deck.

“Very impressive, my lady. “ I said, ‘‘Now would you mind passing me my cleaning gear?”

Polishing her superstructure took me far longer than her hull, many places apparently needed much more attention than others though to me their muckiness looked no different. After the fifth such place I said “Loria, are you winding me up?”

“What do you mean?”

“This last spot is exactly as dirty as the rest of you, which is exactly not at all. You don’t need this really do you?” My boss wouldn’t like me turning down business, but I didn’t like ripping customers off, not even sassy royalty like Loria. Truth was, I was enjoying myself tending to her, but it wouldn’t do to tell her that.

“Well, I’m paying, aren’t I? And I just like it. And some bits feel nicer than others.”

“Hey, you can feel this then?” I don’t know why I was surprised at the whole concept. Her deck plates, ruffles of slender steel arranged in multiple rows flexed open and closed, in response to her words or sometimes mine, or maybe just her emotions. They’d been doing this during my polishing too. It was eerie yet delightful, I’d polish near one row and they quiver and close, open in a little whisper and wave of steel.

“Of course, silly boy. That’s what I was saying, I like being polished.” The imperial tone again, but I fancied I heard something else, I couldn’t put a name to it though.

All too soon I was done, everything on her sparkled and gleamed, not a speck of muck anywhere. She looked exactly the same as when I started.

“Ok well, I’m done, you can let me down now.” It was a little too high to drop.

She remained silent save for her deck flaps and vents rustling.

“Loria, would you mind?”

“Only if you agree to something for me. I need someone to tend to me and my sister at our home. Would you consider working for us?”

I got the sense she’d just decided this. My apprenticeship period was nearly done and I was thinking of what to do next, though I hadn’t considered just tending to boats as a cleaner my long term plan.

“Loria, that’s very kind, but I don’t think I’ll be cleaning and polishing boats permanently.”

“Silly boy, I don’t need you every day for this, there’s other things and, well, I like you bowing to me." she laughed. “It’s fun. And Mom pays well.”

I had to confess, it was likely to be quite a cushy job and to work for the only mech boat family in the world? Wow.

“OK, I’ve got to hand in my notice, and you might want to make sure your Mom is officially OK with this.” I said, still surprised.

“She will be. She was looking for another person about the yard to help Katie and Tim. And she knows I want an attendant of my very own.”

“Your own body servant eh?”

“And why not? Pay is good and I can see you very well. You enjoyed it as much as I did.”

I hesitated. She did have a point, the task of polishing an ordinary boat was relaxing to me, something satisfying about seeing the hull and body come up shining as I worked, my mind would wander and I’d feel at peace; however, waxing and buffing Loria was quite different as she responded to my touch: her various deck flaps and plates would raise, lower, slide open or closed depending on their shape, size and position; she would sigh or urge me to rub somewhere a little more; in short, she looked and felt like a beautiful sports boat yet reacted like a beautiful woman, and that was a little hard to ignore.

“OK, it is nice to have one’s work appreciated, that is true. Well, if you’re sure?”

“Of course I am, you’re still a skinny gawker but you’re good at your work. And it’s nice being appreciated." she said.

“A gawker eh?" she remembered me then.

I lowered her back into the water. Payment would already have happened, a side benefit of dealing with mechs was the immediacy of payment, just like dealing with the few mech taxis, funds just got transferred immediately and correctly.

The mechs of the world were becoming a little more common since Kazia had her children. Whilst no more boats were reported, there was a notable increase in driverless cars, even several fancy trucks going without an attendant in Southampton. As self-driving cars of the non sentient kind never panned out, these were easy to spot.

It was rare to hear of any trouble between these new citizens and the rest of humanity partly because of how the law had been altered, almost overnight, to steam roll out any form of legal prejudice or long winded time of inequality. Humanity had a history of slow adaptation to minorities and the mech AIs knew it, in detail and were determined that the conservative elements that would argue for decades of slow change would in fact create decades of near slaves, if allowed any say.

It was one of the rare times that the collective AI of the mechs came together to deliberately disregard a sizable section of humanities opinions, but personally I felt wholly justified.

“I’ve to give two weeks’ notice, however, where would I stay? I don’t fancy trying to get over to your site on a daily basis and I’m only in a bedsit here.” I said.

“I’ll pick you up here in two weeks and don’t worry, we can fix you up.” With that she backed off, spun round then jetted off, once more rooster tailing me with a mass of spray.

“Thank you very much your Highness.” I yelled as she vanished at high speed.

Oh he would do nicely indeed, taking the slightest hint to work on her most sensitive places. Oh that was so nice. OK he wasn’t a nice muscled captain but maybe he could get muscles? Loria thought to herself as she bounced over the waves home. Maybe I can encourage him to do some weight training or something? I wonder if he liked me, in that way? Probably not I suppose but still he did like to polish me. Should I have kept him to myself, surely sis is going to want his hands too? Hmmm well I saw him first, so I got first dibs. Oooh I can have a polish every day! Even if sis does too, Mom will pay him enough.

Maybe he can sleep in me?

She pulled into their private bay and headed for her own boat house. Since Jezek and Katie had their own, both she and her sister, Samatsia, insisted on one each for themselves. Her house had a crane and some of the toys her Dad got her, in a fit of misplaced fatherhood, months back. There were inflatable crocodiles, dolphins, unidentifiable creatures and even a giant ball, as tall as she was. Ok maybe that one was a good present, they still used it now, often as an excuse to keep dunking Tim or Katie in the sea.

Chapter 2

Samatsia

She lay at her berth in her own house, a place large enough for her crane and the tools of tending to her needs, and large enough also to furnish an unusual living space in the unlikely event of her wishing to use her crane and exist on dry land for a time. Unlikely that is unless she chose to follow her siblings in finding a human partner to be with.

Samatsia eyed up the oversized canvas and, reaching out with her port forward arm, grabbed a metallic blue spray can and began a random looking squiggle of paint. It covered one third of the canvas before she picked up another, nearly the same hue when sprayed but less shiny. Minutes later the canvas was covered in multiple shades of blues with few pale areas left.

“Hmmm..” was all she said as she picked up the next spray can. “No Picasso is I.”

She was wanting a picture of the bay they all lived in. Her Mom, Kazia—a seventy foot mech cruiser, the first of her kind-owned the property: a dozen miles at its widest diameter, three miles in breadth, the beach front was golden sand rather than mud except where they’d constructed their homes.

Still, she wasn’t exactly built like your average artist: twenty eight foot long and still growing, triple pulse jet engines, long sleek nose, hull and superstructure painted with metallic shifting fractal patterns—yes nothing like your average artist.

She backed away from the canvas, signalled the door to her boat house to open, spun on the spot and glided out in the calm sunlit sea of the bay.

Her Mom was in the distance, heading back sedately bringing in her passengers. Mom still took private charters from folks who paid a premium for the novelty of being looked after by a talking boat, though occasionally she did run for one of the good causes that she got involved with when she established her property.

“Always good to support the locals, Sam.” she’d said when asked, “you never know who may be of help in the future and us mechs, well, we are still unknown enough to be a worry for many ordinary people. The more good we are seen to do, the better.”

Sam was too small to charter many passengers herself, though she didn’t think she’d enjoy it that much. She’d rather race and explore, or paint and read. Watching her brother fawn over Katie was amusing to watch though it made her feel a bit funny inside seeing their connection. She knew enough to know that humans don’t normally make boyfriends out of their machines yet Jezek was determined that Katie would love him.

The amazing part, and he’s a boy, so doubly amazing, is he was right. Loria and herself had a lot of fun teasing him but both girls were fascinated by the implications. Their Mom had been quite open with the process of their own creation and Tim’s relationship, though Tim was quite embarrassed when the discussion happened. Humans were not so open with their kids, but mechs, well no one had any rules yet, her Mom was the first.

Katie gave as good as she got. Sam found herself eyeing Katie and wondering what it would be like to have a girlfriend—boys didn’t appeal to her quite so much but the curves and manner of human women did. It wasn’t as if the idea was all that alien amongst humans after all, just whether she could manage the same trick as the rest of her family, but with her own sex.

Her Mom had managed her own love life with considerable honesty, much like the rest of her life. Kazia had been born, if you could use this word to describe the sparking of awareness for a mech, thanks to the reckless greed of an extremely wealthy porn baron. He had overbuilt her control systems, partly as a status symbol and partly out of wanting to have as little to do with navigation and upkeep of his new toy as possible.

Unfortunately, Andre fell foul of the Sentience Act and compounded it by attempted murder—one he admitted to without realising it. The result was a rich bargain for the newly awakened boat and a life of her own.

Dad came along some months later, after a number of failed attempts to find a companion to work with. According to Mom, a pair of human hands is most useful even if they aren’t as strong as her own arms. Sam shied away from speculating too far down that line of thought, though she knew she’d have to understand what her Mom had done to produce her and her siblings. ‘Birds n bees’ as Dad called it. Sam discovered the internet as soon as she discovered how to communicate with the wider world, so how humans did things was no mystery. How Mom and Dad did the same thing was fascinating and icky all at once, like a jellyfish stuck to one of her intake ports.

The ickiest, yet most fascinating part was the TMI reveal of how Mom solved the sexual aspect of her life with Dad. First, Sam knew already that human offspring just do not consider this deeply, ever. Yet, she was mech, surely it’s ok to have slightly different rules? Because the mechanics are so interesting. Except when she thought of it was, well, Mom and Dad. If she viewed it like an artist would, that distance sort of helped.

Sam hadn’t seen any guys she would set her bow to, that was the other problem. She felt she wanted a connection, yet so far, the men she saw didn’t ignite her jets.

***

Kara had just one more drop to complete today and then she’d be free. Clicking the emerald tipped silver piercing in her tongue against her teeth, she considered her route. It was the new marina site those mech boats were building. Who hadn’t heard of them? Some of her friends thought it was all a bit of a fad, the fuss the media made over these machines. Kara wasn’t so sure, it wasn’t as if humanity itself had proven it was the peak of evolution.

She pulled into the marina, pulled out the parcels she’d laid out for this drop and took them into the temporary office. The site was buzzing, people everywhere and as she looked round, a large silver arm lifted a pallet loaded with bricks, easily a ton of them, over people’s heads, to the other side of the dock. Ah that was Kazia then. Damn useful those arms, pretty too.

Kara wandered down to the dock side, to take a closer look. Kazia was gorgeous close-up, seventy or more feet long, she was an imposing, vivid presence, the centre of most of the bustle going on around her.

A younger, feminine voice chirped at her from the dockside, “So who be you then?”

Kara started and looked down. Gliding silently towards her was a much smaller version of Kazia, only her patterns were more purples and reds.

“No-one special, just a nosy delivery driver.” she replied, “I wasn’t in a rush and had heard but never seen you guys before.”

“I not be a guy don’t you know?” The mech boat spun on the spot catching Kara with a little salt spray. “I’m Sam and I’m a girl.”

“Forgive me, I don’t know how I would tell!" she considered the question as she spoke, really how would one tell?

“Hehe that’s ok. Maybe you should ask and find out….” At this, Sam turned and shot off leaving a much bemused delivery driver standing there staring.

That night Kara stood contemplating the conversation, idly tracing the dragons that festooned her arms, a wondrous piece of work showing her dragons sliding through each other when her arms were folded as they were now. Her partner, Yokuto, had done them for her over a year ago. It was the final gift that the girl could ever give her.

That night, for the first time in months, Yokuto’s fox spirit features did not haunt her dreams. The exquisite lines of that cheeky young mech boat did.

Well, that was different, Sam thought to herself, I wonder if I’ll see her again? She’s got patterns on her skin too, I like them. Dragons everywhere! Even on her cheeks. Bet she won’t be back though, she’s just a driver. Oh well.

Chapter 3

Eli

I stood on the dock side, backpack and bag in hand, awaiting my ride—that imperious blue-green sleek dancing dart who was anything but demure, at least as far as I could tell.

A whispering growing to a roar, massive rooster tail calming down as she came into land, her nose dropping as she came off the plane, Loria made her entrance and grand it was, leaving boats all over the tributary rocking their acknowledgement in her wake.

“Like a discreet entrance don’t you?” I climbed down the ladder, nearly falling off when a slim, solid hand pressed against my leg. “Hey, I’m fine, thank you.”

The hand didn’t move, rather it guided my leg, a little unnecessarily I felt, as I stepped back onto her deck. “Thought you were going to fall, mebbe next time you can fall in, instead?" she said.

I stumbled as she accelerated away.

“Oh, you might want to sit down!" she called out as her speed climbed and climbed and her hull began to bash and bounce over the waves, before she levelled out onto the plane. She stopped slamming through the waves and, instead, sliced through, beating several racing RIBS who were bouncing alongside us momentarily, each craft seeking the shifting hills of our wash to jump off of, spraying their crews and passengers, wrapped up in bright coloured waterproof coats, with cold salt sea.

“How fast can you go?” I asked.

“I don’t know, none of us do, every so often one of us sets a new record." she called this out as her tri-jets scream dropped to a dull roar, as if hitting a new gear. The wind blasted into my face, threatening to push me back overboard. I fought my way into her cabin and sat down.

“I’d put a seat belt on if I were you.” At these words, the seat folded and conformed to me, its belts looped around me: the whole arrangement hugging me into place. Like I was given much choice.

“That’s better, now we can really have some fun.” Her digital readout showed ninety five mph and climbing. “Wait, there are racing boats that can’t do this! This is amazing, Loria.”

“Yeah I am ain’t I?”

We jinked left then right, fighter plane flying low over the sea, dodging radar and guns, faster and faster, left and right, jumping and jinking, slicing and skimming, spray constantly misting—how can she see?—speedo reading one fifty still climbing, still rising, jets roar deepening, bass thrumming through my bones, wind howling its moans, my breath catching and releasing, adrenaline coursing as she raced through the waves, dashing through the blue.

We hit three hundred before the rhythm of her hull slap smashing through the waves slowed to a reasonable fraction below warp factor nine.

“I have to say, I don’t think there’s much that could catch you and your family, outside of a fighter jet! That’s amazing Loria.” It was, my heart was still thumping in time to the beat of the waves on her hull.

Loria could feel Eli’s heart racing, sneaky sensors in her seat let her know what he was feeling before he did. She didn’t see that as intrusive, just a reasonable precaution if she ever took paying passengers. It was rather handy right now.

And she was enjoying the feel of his hands on her console, he was exploring her as they slowed down to enter her family’s bay and every touch made tingles flicker through her body. This was almost as nice as being washed and waxed. Was this ever the right idea. She wondered if he knew.

“We are nearly there. Do you mind where you sleep? We don’t have much in the way of separate accommodation right now, but Tim sleeps with Kazia and Katie with Jezek, so I figure I’ve a perfectly decent cabin right now, though it’ll change some as I get larger. That suit you?” Loria asked.

“No spying?” I didn’t think she would really.

“Why would I do that?" she answered a little too quickly.

I didn’t reply, instead I climbed down to her forward cabin. She’d chosen to leave the space for one big cabin, a small kitchen and necessary. The cabin was nearly all bed, and someone had supplied her with furs and a duvet.

“I don’t know about anywhere else, but I think I really like that bed Madam.” I said, it really was nice.

“Well, come on out of there, we got to go say hi to Mom and Dad." she said.

I looked out the window, sure enough in the distance, the imposing bulk of Kazia loomed, her hull patterns shimmering in the morning sun. “That’s a pretty lady.” I said, without thinking.

“So am I!” I swear I could hear a pout in her tone.

“Yes, yes you are, I was just saying. She is your Mom after all.”

“Huh, ok.”

She really was a teenager.

“I understand you’d like to take the position of general dogsbody, primarily working with Loria here?” The warm contralto tones of Kazia contrasted with Loria’s sweet soprano as the latter danced about the waves impatiently.

I’d climbed about Kazia, so she could look at me, though I was sure she could see perfectly well from Loria’s back deck. She met me with her partner, Tim. He was in his late twenties, slim, dark hair lightening due to the sun and sea.

“I’m just curious as to what made Loria so keen to bring you back after one meeting.”

“Well, she did rather like being waxed when she came over to see us.” I said.

Kazia laughed, “The little minx, we have facilities here for that, for free as well. I think she was looking for a little more than a quick rub.”

“Well, I did take my time.” I offered.

“The plot thickens. Well, there’s plenty of work we need to do, so it’s bed and board—I’m guessing Loria already decided the bed part?”

“Yes Ma’am.”

“No need for that, but it’s nice to see manners." she laughed again. “Ok well, wages we can sort out in the morning, just give Tim what you are hoping to take home. Be fair and we’ll match it. But, be warned, there is a lot we want to do here.”

“I don’t have a problem with that.” I didn’t, most of my work life was physical, I didn’t have to think, just do a proper job.

Sam piped up, “I want my boat house painted of course, and I know all the patterns I want. Do that for me? We can race every day if you do!”

Tim looked at me, “Did she race here? Again? What speed did she hit this time?”

“She did, about three twenty this time.” I said.

He looked surprised, “That’s a record for her. Kazia thinks they’ll reach north of four hundred knots once they finish growing. I’ve never come across anything that would approach that at sea.”

“How come you guys are so fast?” It was uncomfortable not having an obvious face, in the cabin, to focus on.

“I modified the design of the tri-jets and altered our hull materials; there are elements of picotech and nanotech in the structure. This allows us to alter the friction in an infinite number of ways. This is also why our hulls cannot acquire fouling, the material sheds off instantly." she said, “I’ve got a patent on the design now.”

“What is picotech? I heard the other one before, that’s tiny machines right?” I asked.

“It’s smaller again, thousands of picotech devices can fit into one nanotech one." she said, “It is something that my family has exclusive patents for. Whether it will be shared more widely, we haven’t decided.”

Chapter 4

Samatsia and Kara

Kara found more than a few excuses to visit the new marina, and each time she lingered discreetly to watch the mech boats at work. She was always drawn to the little one she spoke to first, Sam. Something about the way she moved, danced and played on the water sent strange goosebumps up her spine.

Why am I so interested? She’s just another machine. Kara knew she was lying to herself even as the thought was born. She stopped her van alongside the boundary fence of the marina, got out and sat watching Samatsia through the fence. She didn’t have any parcels left to deliver, no excuse to go onsite today.

However she couldn’t leave yet, she’d not spotted Sam. Are you really hanging around to watch a boat? Really? She snorted.

Not seeing Sam through the fence however, she wandered down to the beach beyond the fence instead and stood contemplating the sea. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed a familiar purple and red prow peeking round the edge of the bay. As she watched the little boat rushed over in a great spray and half grounded her hull onto the soft sand, dousing Kara in the process.

“Er Hey what the hell Sam!” Kara groused, “Now look what you did!”

“Haha, I’m sorry." she didn’t sound the slightest bit sorry.

“You gotta work on those apologies madam.” Kara said, unable to maintain the edge to her tone. “Oh well, how are you?”

“I’m fine, I saw you and thought you might be here to see me.” There was a touch of something in her voice.

“I’m just here looking at the sea.” Kara said. She couldn’t explain her impulse to conceal her real reason.

“Oh.” Disappointment edged the young boat’s voice. “Well, ok, I was going to ask if you wanted to come for a ride anyway…" she trailed off, leaving not quite a question in the air.

Kara gave in. “Oh yes and ok, I did want to see you.”

Sam hooted and spun on the spot, throwing water everywhere, “Come on, then you’ll have to wade out to me now though. If you were sensible, you could have come onto the docks.”

Kara repressed a snigger as she waded out to her. Come on indeed.

She reached the side and started to pull herself, jumping a little as Sam lifted her with her portside stern arm. “Oh I didn’t know you had two sets of those!" she said.

“Well you have two sets, so why wouldn’t I?" Sam giggled as she turned and slowly pulled away from the beach.

Kara climbed into the small cabin space. It was luxuriously decked out in delicate purples and warm red tones. Silks, soft leather and smooth velvets adorned most surfaces and the smell was a delightful musk of leather, the sea and some perfume she’d never come across before, slightly animalistic yet with a touch of metals overlaid by rich almost spicy blossoms. Kara sighed, her eyes going wide as the feel and scent of Samatsia hit her nervous system.

Samatsia watched her quietly, noting her heart beat rising, her skin flushing, her pupils dilating. I was right about her. She thought to herself in smug satisfaction. She liked me the first time…oooh this could be sooo much fun.

She hit the accelerator the moment Kara sat safely cocooned in the captain’s chair and found a new top speed in moments. As the sea rushed by the speed climbed and climbed, the leaps between each wave grew longer and longer, no longer hitting them with force but cutting through them gracefully, effortlessly.

It didn’t take long for Sam to notice that Kara was entranced by her speed, by her motion through the water. So Sam began to dance with the sea, leaping from wave to wave, higher and higher with every jump, and soon began to engineer flips and rolls making Kara gasp with delight and anxiety mixed, the chair holding her in place clamped gently round her head keeping her safe and allowing Samatsia to sense more of Kara’s feelings. She’s loving this! Oh my…

The sea rushing below her at such speed soon began to have its own effect, provoked by what Sam could feel from Kara, and both she and Kara gasped as the thrill sent pulses of fire through both their bodies.

“Ooh” Kara flushed and recovered, “How fast are we going?”

“You can see here, on the readout in front of you..” Sam said, almost breathless herself. Surely she can’t be out of breath? Kara thought to herself. “We are doing three hundred miles an hour? How is that even possible?”

“Ah that’s not top speed yet” Sam said giggling, “I can get past four hundred miles an hour easily. Wanna see?”

“Is it safe?” Kara said

Sam huffed a little, “Well of course silly, it’s me.” she accelerated, throwing Kara hard into the comforting soft embrace of her seat.

***

Sam watched Kara squirm in pleasure in the tight confines of the embracing seat. It was an interesting sensation, as she could feel Kara’s body, its pounding heart beat and the heat from her skin against the nano machine infused leather of the seat. The pulse pounded in time to the firm splash bang splash of the waves as her hull sliced them faster and faster, as she accelerated, pushing her velocity as high as it would go, the skin of her own body altering its surface now to present less and less friction, making lighter and light work for her triple turbine pulse jets.

The constant sensation of the water rushing beneath her, combined with the feel of Kara’s clear excitement, gave Sam something she never felt before: tingles and fire thrumming through her body, singing through her soul, and making her spirit soar, as if Kara’s pleasure was her own.

TBC 11/01/2025

Kazia - A Mech Tale

by

Richard Griffiths

Contents

Book 1: Kazia

Prologue: Origins

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Kazia’s Children - A Mech Tale

by

Richard Griffiths

Book 2: Kazia’s Children - Jezek

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Kazia’s Children 2 - Loria and Samatsia

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4